Test machine specs: MSI X670E, AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, AMD Radeon RX 7900XTX, 48gb RAM
Add-ons: FSLTL, GSX Pro, REX AccuSeason (which may misrepresent some colours in certain light conditions)
Firstly, a note: this airport is available currently from Kiwiflightsim’s own website or, for those who prefer to stick to the bigger stores, Flightsim.to and (soon) Simmarket. For me as a UK buyer, the price was much better on the dev’s own store and presumably he gets to keep all the proceeds if you purchase there. The build has been tested in both sims but is NOT native for 2024 — a separate version for the new sim will follow in due course. This is a review of the MSFS version.
DETAIL
We’re currently experiencing a bit of a renaissance when it comes to the quality of third-party airports being released — Flyt’s Curitiba (already reviewed) set a very high bar for the remainder of 2025, and while Kiwi’s Faleolo doesn’t quite match it, it certainly introduces features that really break the mould for immersion.
The terminal building is impressive, nicely recreating the woodwork used extensively in its structure. Weathering is decent but if I had to really nit-pick, I’d say the textures overall are perhaps slightly clean-looking. The interior really shines and features a bunch of cool animations — I won’t ruin the surprise (although if you saw the promo video, the cat’s probably already out of the bag!) but these include passengers. The modelling inside is fantastic, with every internal part having been included. As interiors go, it’s definitely one of the best and ticks every box imaginable. Some of the traditional Samoan artwork that’s been recreated here and there — both inside and outside the terminal — really is superb.
Connected to the main terminal is the VIP terminal, which also has a full interior. And if that’s not enough, the newly-constructed domestic terminal — located some way to the west — features one too! The textures adorning this structure and its car-park are quite obviously meant to look new, and they do a good job of letting us know that this facility is a very recent addition.
Other buildings within the airport’s confines have also been modelled, though mostly in slightly lesser quality. The ATC tower complex is just as good as the main terminal, however, and the Samoa Airways hangar looks decent, having a great static Twotter model parked outside (plus a further two inside). There are a good number of palm trees dotted about the scenery, which are custom made to match those native to this part of the world.
Perhaps the scenery’s weakest area is its ground textures. They’re far from bad but I’ve seen better in 2025. Like parts of the terminal, they look a little too clean, which doesn’t convince that the airport has been used and abused over the years. There’s also very little outside the airfield perimeter — I’d like to have seen a bit of the surroundings included but the default assets do a reasonable enough job of recreating a tropical paradise. But in more positive news, after reviewing a couple of great airports that lack a complete perimeter fence, I’m happy to report that Faleolo DOES include it in its entirety! Several custom models, too, presumably reflecting reality.
Night-lighting is pretty good but some areas of the terminal look a touch garish. It’s always hard to properly judge night-lighting without looking at actual photos but it feels just a fraction too bright here. It is more convincing elsewhere on the airfield, though.
Finally, if you want a surprise, set your sim’s clock to 0459 and start watching the runway… 
PERFORMANCE
I expected blistering performance, given the size and business of the airport; and while it is indeed great with my current/preferred settings, it did start to stutter more than I would’ve expected when I significantly increased my TLOD. I suspect the terminal’s generous use of glass (always revealing its interior) is the likely culprit as I’ve seen this behaviour before with buildings of similar design/detail. In conclusion, performance is decent but possibly marginally worse than it should be. I’m not sure it would be silky-smooth on a mid or lower-end machine.
VERDICT
This is another airport that’s been helped by some recent work by Asobo, in the form of the Oceania World Update. The coastline upon which the airport sits is really well done; its shores gently lapped by the turquoise waters of the South Pacific. But I shan’t give Asobo all the credit because Kiwi’s scenery is also a work of art. While it might not be among the year’s very, very best, it does most things extremely competently; and what it doesn’t do really well, it does perfectly satisfactorily. The terminals (interiors in particular) and their landsides all look great. We get static and animated passengers, custom jetways and a fully-encompassing perimeter fence. Then there are the cool little animations, which require a bit of a nosy around to find.
Worth mentioning that the GSX profile allows us to get a prolonged view of arriving and departing passengers as they walk through the glass corridors leading to the jetways. This is a really immersive feature, made possible not only by the terminal’s design, but by the inclusion of a well thought out GSX profile too.
Since NSFA isn’t busy airport, I’ve not had chance to see how well FSLTL traffic responds; however if there are any issues I’ll bring them up in a follow-up post.
To conclude, this is a great scenery for anyone who likes to fly in Polynesia/Oceania. There are real-world flights from Oz and New Zealand (Qantas, Virgin Australia, Air New Zealand) and neighbouring Fiji (Fiji Airways), in addition to the inter-island services operated by the Twotter-equipped local carrier, Samoa Airways. It’s a solid, well-crafted airport with aesthetically-pleasing approaches to both runway ends; and while the inclusion of custom surroundings would have been a nice touch, it doesn’t sour the experience. As usual I will contact the dev with my suggestions (he was very helpful with Hokitika and released an update only a few days after the initial release) so further enhancements might not be out of the question…
Ground textures: 7/10
Building textures: 8/10
Apron clutter: 8/10
Terminal interior: 10/10
Outdoor landside detail: 10/10
Jetway connection: 6/10
Performance: 7/10
FSLTL compatibility: TBC
GSX compatibility: 10/10
Night-lighting: 8/10
Overall immersion: 9/10
IMAGES
