INTRODUCTION

This scenery file has been created, in the first instance, for use during the Cix VFR Club Treasure hunt event. 

This is my first real attempt at scenery design, and has been completed within the limitations of :

a)  	Available time 
b) 	The availability of suitable scenery objects 
c) 	The limitations of flight simulator itself 
d)  	The relative lack of any suitable features in Essex, especially around many of 
	the airstrips 
e)	The fact that I have never seen any of these airfields in real life, but have had to 
	rely on photographs, drawings and ‘Top Down’ views of the VFR scenery of 
	flightsim.   

However, the main limitations are my own skills and knowledge in the subject. As such, it is a ‘work in progress’, which I hope to improve as time goes by.

As Gerry Winskill was my inspiration with his fantastic ‘UK Farmstrips” scenery, I have completed my files without  ‘flatten areas’. 

The airfields completed are those listed under Essex in my copy of “Lockyears Farm Strips and Private Airfields Flight Guide”.  However, I have excluded those already featuring in FS9,  Boones Farm which is included in Gerry Winskill’s UK Farmstrips and Audley End, the latter due to the fact that it would have required a flatten area (You literally ‘fall off’ of the runway when using “VFR Terrain England & Wales” scenery), perhaps I’ll come back to that one in any later versions.   I have also included a couple of others which I found listed elsewhere,  and which I have added for interest and my own purposes.  The full list is:

Damyn’s Hall		(X9DH) 
Fanners Farm		(X9FA)	N51*47  E00* 26
Gerpins Farm 		(X2GE)	N51*31   E00*14
Great Oakley		(X9GO)	N51* 54  E01*10
Laindon Airstrip	(X2LA)	N51* 36  E00* 27	
Rayne Hall Farm	(X2RY)	N51* 53  E00* 30
Stones Farm		(X2SF)	N51* 58  E00* 41
Thorpe-Le-Soken	(X2TS)	N51* 52  E01* 09
Thurrock		(X2TH)	N51* 32  E00* 22
West Horndon		(X2WH)	N51* 33  E00*21

As with Gerry’s “UK Farmstrips” , I have used  runway edge markers, which help to find the runway on the approach to land (but not much……you still need eagle eyes) or while taking off,  and have also added a few buildings and trees, located as per “Lockyears” and the photographs available.  

In some places, due to restricted information, I have used “artistic license”.  For example, if I was unable to determine whether an area was tree covered or was in fact a ploughed field, then  I usually plump for the trees.

If you like this scenery then great.  
If you don’t, well…………just delete it.  
If you have constructive criticism, especially if you have acknowledged expertise, 
then please let me know….I’m eager to learn.  
If you just want to ‘Knock’ my efforts……….forget it



INSTALLATION

The file you’ve just unzipped contains:
ReadMe1st        the document you are now reading.
Static Objects Library folder
EZ Objects Library folder.
Essex Fields folder.

1. THIS IS IMPORTANT, back up your “Addon Scenery/Static Objects Library” folder (if you already have one), your “Addon Scenery/Scenery” and your “Addon Scenery/Texture” folder. 

2	
a) If you don’t already have one, copy  the enclosed “Static Objects Library” folder into your FS9  “Addon Scenery” folder. 
	
b)  If you do already have a folder called “Static Objects Library”, just copy  the contents of my two sub folders, “scenery” & “Textures” into  the corresponding folders in your existing library, allowing them to overwrite if necessary. 
(Note the word “Copy”.  For some reason the textures of the static objects folder do not always show in FS9.  If this is the case, then also copy the contents of the “Static Objects Library/Textures” folder to your main FS9 Textures folder).

3.Copy the enclosed “Essex Airstrips” folder to your “Addon Scenery” folder.

4.Open the enclosed “EZ Objects” folder.  Inside you will find a “Scenery” and a “Texture” folder.  Copy the contents of the scenery folder into your “Addon 
Scenery/Scenery” folder and the contents of the texture folder into your “Addon Scenery/Texture” folder.


Last steps. Install your new “Static Objects Library” scenery  AND “Essex Strips” to FS9, in the normal way.. Make sure that the Essex Strips is added second, so that it’s at a higher scenery level, in your FS9’s Scenery Library.  To activate the sceneries, don’t forget the need to humour FS9 by adding the scenery and exiting FS9, before 
restarting it.

. 


KNOWN BUGS

The following bugs are known about and will be rectified in the next version of this 
scenery.  If you come across anymore, please let me know.

1.	The “Initial Points” at some airfields have been set incorrectly, or not set at all.  This means that if you load the simulator at these airfields,the aircraft will not appear in the expected place (up to a mile away from the airfield).  In this case you must “slew” the aircraft to the required position.

2.	This scenery has been compiled without the use of “Exclude areas”. This MAY mean that if you are using autogen scenery from other third party 
designers, their scenery MIGHT intrude through my scenery, resulting in buildings/trees appearing in awkward places.  This can be rectified by 
lowering the autogen density slider in FS9.


USING THE SCENERY

The following is a direct copy from Gerry Winskill’s “UK Farmstrips” scenery readme file, and as it is relevant to my strips also, is included with his 
permission.

“To get the most out of these farm strips I would strongly recommend adding Lockyears Farm Strips Guide to your Fathers’ Day, Birthday, Christmas Presents hit list. If really desperate, you can even buy it yourself. This publication devotes two pages to each Farm Strip, one covering how to find it and the other giving details of its layout.

Landing at a strip differs significantly from the way we can, if we wish, arrive at most small fields. An overhead join, followed by a few circuits, to fathom out the lay of the land, is pretty well essential. As in real life, to get down in one piece you must 
cross the threshold at the exact recommended speed for your aircraft. Be prepared to abort the landing and go around. Be prepared to do it several times! That’s what happens in real life. The real life accident reports cover the few who don’t do this. If you let runway go below unused, you probably won’t be able to stop, in the available runway length; particularly if you’re landing downhill. If you’re landing uphill, be prepared to haul the stick back more than normal, in the flare. But keep an eye on the speed, as you do so, or you may well stall! Finally, pick an aircraft that can handle the conditions. The Default Piper Cub should be up to the job. So should a Cessna 150. I’ve taken to using the Maule, which will land at 50 and cruise at 145 kias.

If the whole thing sounds more challenging than heavy metal at international airports, it is; and therein lies the attraction. Beware, it’s addictive. You may even find yourself practicing circuits……..” 




RECOMMENDATIONS

When completing this library I had the following  pay-ware scenery installed:

Get Mapping VFR Photographic Scenery
Visual Flight VFR Terrain

I also have the following third party files installed which enhance  and bring the Essex countryside to life. In some cases they directly affect the airfields included in my scenery.  All these files are really excellent and are highly recommended. They can all be downloaded from http://www.vfraddons.co.uk

UK ANO  Vols 1 & 2 by Gerry Winskill
UK Fuel Storage Depots by Gerry Winskill
UK Refineries by Gerry Winskill
UK Ports by Gerry Winskill
Essex Pylons by Paul Hinkley 
SW Essex Autogen by Andrew Morley
South_East_Essex Autogen by Andrew Morley



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

SceneryGenX  Scenery Generator for FS2004 by Tom Hiscox,
Runway 12 Scenery Objects by:
Seev Kahn, Ted Andrews, Len Hickman, Stephen Legg, Todd Lucas, Geoff Williams 
and M. Allen Richards.

Special appreciation to Gerry Winskill for his inspiration in having created “UK Farmstrips” Scenery and  for his help and encouragement.  In linking my efforts to his scenery in any way,  I hope I do not devalue his excellent renditions and have no intention to do so

LEGAL

This software is Freeware and may be freely redistributed while it stays FREEWARE: 
you may not charge any fee for redistribution. Redistribution on CD or DVD is not 
allowed without my prior written permission.
Use this software at your own risk. I will not be responsible for whatever issue you 
may have with it on your computer. If you need help in understanding the installation 
process, please read the FS manuals, look for tutorials or ask on forums (Avsim, 
Flightsim, etc...).


Pete Chapman
petechapman@airscene.org

