Test machine specs: MSI X670E, AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, AMD Radeon RX 7900XTX, 48gb RAM
MSFS add-ons: REX AccuSeason (which may misrepresent some colours in certain light conditions)
FS2024 add-ons: none
More an airfield than an airport but this review belongs here, nonetheless…
People interested in this product will likely own more than one BBD product already and will therefore know what to expect. If this is your first one, however, expect highly-detailed, intimate airfields, mostly located in the southern quarter of England (with a handful of exceptions). The southern bias is due to the location of the developer, who undertakes site visits to ensure maximum accuracy.
DETAIL
Like many devs since the launch of FS2024, Burning Blue have upped their game, and there’s a very noticeable contrast between their earliest and latest airfields. Kittyhawk Aerodrome (formerly Kittyhawk Farm) is located at the edge of the South Downs and, more importantly from a simmer’s perspective, right on the edge of an extensive photogrammetry area (which features enhanced eye candy for those using Orbx’s GB South package).
As usual, the airfield and its surroundings are beautifully crafted. All three runways here are grass strips but the detail on them is exceptional, even by BBD’s standards. The scenery features two complete hangar interiors, a custom windsock, custom fences, custom vegetation, dynamic animated people and static aircraft models based on those you’d see here in real life. As is typical for BBD, a few surrounding POIs have been added as VFR references, including the solar farm adjacent to the field, a house, an abandoned barn and Laughton Place tower (a castle-like brick structure prominently visible on the RWY16 approach). Not mentioned in the marketing hype (and coming as a nice surprise) is the inclusion of animated grazing sheep in a field under one of the approaches to the shortest runway.
Night-lighting is pretty irrelevant at most of these small airfields as they’re VFR only and so not operational during darkness. But night-lighting has been included anyway, to reflect reality.
PERFORMANCE
During my time on Xbox (Series X) most BBD airfields presented black screen/CTD problems but on PC they’re absolutely fine. Of course FSLTL doesn’t cover these small 'dromes so the only thing affecting performance is typically the level of detail, along with location. But even at the edge of a major PG area, there’s no framerate hit here.
VERDICT
EGKF is another typical Burning Blue airfield: it’s gorgeously modelled and crammed full of small details that really elevate the immersion. The price on this one is only £5.95 — which is virtually half the price of their previous release (Fishburn) — I can only assume the reason for this low price is the tiny size of the field, and the fact that there’s less interior modelling than usual. But otherwise, it maintains the level of detail we’ve come to expect from Burning Blue. The surrounding scenery is decent (from both Asobo and Orbx) and it’s a very short hop from a number of other BBD airfields and, of course, the larger London/Southeast airports.
With Kittyhawk being so close to the coast, owners of Seafront Sims’ Vessels: UK Southeast and/or Global Shipping will frequently enjoy views of various boats and ships going about their business between Dover and the Solent.
On a final note, the differences between MSFS and FS2024 are becoming increasingly apparent in third-party scenery (as devs become accustomed to the new SDK), and Kittyhawk in the new sim looks so much nicer. Since many BBD airfields are in rural areas, the new trees really enhance their appearance, and we’re treated to far more detailed, less mushy ground textures. Note that MSFS and FS2024 versions are separate products, but are both available as a single purchase.