Test machine specs: MSI X670E, AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, AMD Radeon RX 7900XTX, 48gb RAM
Reviewed for: FS2024
Add-ons: FS Traffic, GSX Pro
DETAIL
I own so many M’M Sims airports, I’m now confident I know exactly what I’m getting whenever I buy one: a decent product that serves it purpose but doesn’t really excel in any particular area. I certainly don’t get super-excited by the prospect of acquiring one, nor does the thought of flying in and out of them have me in fits of anticipative joy. But every now and then, M’M surprise me — and they’ve done just that with this rehash of one of their very first airport sceneries, LTBJ.
I’ve seen a couple of complaints about the quality of the ground textures and while they’re fairly uniform across the scenery — in both wear and colour — they actually look quite pleasing to me, being fully PBR. The ground markings are certainly far better than M’M’s typical standard and really do give the impression of having spent years exposed to the elements (including the region’s torturous summer sun). In this department, M’M have managed to pull off a unique aesthetic look and it works well.
The terminal building looks really good, with any hint of M’M’s typically sterile texturing being mostly hidden by the structure’s extensive use of glass and metal. (it’s also quite new so any areas exhibiting that ‘freshly-built’ look are believable). The interior is above average for M’M but is where most of the scenery’s sterility is found, and large areas of it do feel a touch lifeless. That said, there are a handful of static people models dotted around and much of the internal detail is high-res. They even included the smoking terrace!
Out on the expansive apron, the clutter is a mix of custom and default, but there’s not quite enough of the former to fully satisfy people like me who crave authenticity. What is here is decent — there just needs to be more of it, and perhaps a little more variety.
Moving to the terminal’s outdoor landside, we see plenty of great modelling (M’M’s landsides tend to be a mixed bag so this is definitely positive). Again, some of the texturing is a bit generic-looking but the airport’s roadways are noteworthy for their quality. In fact, apart from a static train that doesn’t quite match up with the station platform, the landside modelling is pretty flawless. The terminal entrance doors are animated and the drop-off/pick-up zones have a full compliment of signage, barriers and lamp-posts. Like other areas of the scenery, though, it desperately needs a few additional custom assets to inject life — a few people, a line of taxis, baggage carts, etc. It’s quite sad to see this area neglected because the framework is definitely there for finer detail to be placed on.
Moving away from the terminal, the various buildings maintain a decent level of quality, even if the odd one reverts to that classic M’M sterility. The fuel farm looks good, as does the ATC tower (which has an interior, sans controllers). We get an all-encompassing perimeter fence (yay!) which features high-res airfield warning signs at regular intervals. The airport’s east side hasn’t been done to the same standard as the west (i.e. terminal) side but that’s par for the course. There’s not that much here that needed doing for the benefit of arriving and departing pilots.
PERFORMANCE
Having read numerous reviews of this airport, performance seems to be a contentious issue. I’ve a high-end PC and haven’t struggled but I have witnessed a couple of tiny stutters that could be indicative of a problem for lower-spec machines. This is Turkey’s fourth-busiest airport and in the summer it can get pretty busy, so if you’re planning to add third-party AI traffic (e.g. FSLTL or FS Traffic), you might want to exercise caution if your PC isn’t particularly beefy.
VERDICT
As mentioned earlier, I’ve not been pleasantly surprised by an M’M airport since Münster Osnabrück — I was expecting typical M’M standard so the abundance of high-quality modelling certainly took me aback.
Is it a perfect airport? No. But by M’M’s usual standards, it’s as close as you can get. By wider standards, I’d say it’s above average. The modelling and texturing is generally very good (exceptional in some places) and no area feels like a complete let-down. Too few custom assets on the ramp and a lack of non-fixed detail at the terminal entrances are my two grievances — especially given the quality of the base modelling and the fact that they chose to develop the interior of a landside train — but there really is plenty to like here. M’M have proved that they can really pull their finger out when it comes to creating a flagship product. A few very simple refinements would take this from a very good scenery to an excellent scenery.
So as it stands, would I recommend it? Yes; absolutely. Turkey is a place not well covered in the sim and the majority of current offerings for the country are far below what we expect in 2025. Although Izmir v2 doesn’t shine as brightly as MXI’s superb Sabiha Gökçen, it is much closer to that ballpark than it is to the work of other developers satisfying the needs of Turkish simmers. It’s a short hop from numerous Greek airports (to some of which there are schedules) and of course from Istanbul. There are routes from Iran (for users of Homasim scenery) and other regions of the Middle East, plus medium-haul flights to much of Western/Northern Europe.
On a final note, the scenery can currently be had with a 40% discount from most vendors. For me, that made it just over £10, which is good value for an airport of this size and quality.
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