Aircraft used: default 32N & 781, LVFR 320, PMDG 738
Live weather: on
While new release EGHI is now my favourite Ini airport (and one of my favourites, full-stop), KLAX has to come a close second, for a number of reasons — some of which aren’t entirely down to the developer…
DETAIL
This is a BIG airport and the detail to size ratio is very impressive! Like most of their airports, Ini’s KLAX has a truly authentic feel to it, from the moment the runway comes into view on finals, to the moment you tuck up the flaps after take-off.
The terminals are beautifully modelled but only the Tom Bradley terminal has an interior. The detail inside is plentiful but it is low-res, predictably. The aprons, taxiway and runways are all done well and feature the plentiful green paint that adorns taxiways and their islands at the real airport.
Ground clutter is perhaps on the sparse side IN PLACES but one has to bear in mind that sacrifices are required somewhere to get a decent version of KLAX running on console.
All hangars and airside peripheral buildings are well modelled/textured (love the huge glass panel doors of the United hangar just south of the terminal complex!), as are those landside. The area to the south of the terminals, where all the hotels are (near Sepulveda Boulevard), has received plenty of attention, however the textures here are lower-res than those at the terminals. Not that it matters as this area looks really cool when approaching either 24L or 25R!
Approaching the 07 runways from the east with easterly winds necessitates a turn close to the Port of LA, and this is where Seafront Simulations’ Global Shipping REALLY shines! There are literally around 50-60 ships of various sizes, either slowly moving or anchored offshore — then several more as you establish yourself on finals (for either the 06 or 07 runways). It’s an amazing sight to behold; one of the best in the sim I think! Add this to some really good photogrammetry in the LA area — and live weather when the sea fog wall very realistically rolls in — and you have an incredibly immersive experience, created by a sort of inadvertent partnership between Ini and Asobo!
If you really want to go the extra mile, grab LVFR’s airport static aircraft pack, which works really well with Ini’s KLAX. A couple of anomalies with aircraft positions but barely noticeable.
PERFORMANCE
One could be forgiven for thinking all this detail provided by both Ini and Asobo would result in mediocre performance at best… but you’d be wide of the mark. Performance is outstanding with very little stuttering and, after what must easily be 100 flights, I’ve only ever had one CTD! I have had black screens on a couple of occasions but they’ve always returned — and this and the aforementioned CTD only occurred after I installed the LVFR static aircraft pack.
VERDICT
There’s really a lot going on in the LA area when you have Ini’s KLAX, Seafront’s Global Shipping and LVFR’s traffic running concurrently. That anything runs smoothly at all is a surprise but it actually greatly exceeds all expectations. One CTD in six months — with the PMDG 738 and after many, many flights — is testament to the airport’s stability and I’m not going to strip it of it’s ‘flawless performance’ tag based on a single crash that occurred only after installing something else.
I highly recommend this airport, especially considering Ini’s productss are always very competitively priced. It’s even a no-brainer if you have Asobo’s hand-crafted KLAX as it just improves on that version in so many ways!
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