Measuring Success: X-Plane's Wed Metrics Explained

X-Plane is a flight simulator with a World Editor (WED) that allows users to create and edit airports and runways. The WED is not used to edit or create 3-D models of aircraft, buildings or other objects in the world. Users can find the elevation, ICAO identifier and other basic information about their airport using the Airnav database. The elevation is in feet above mean sea level by default, but can be changed to metres.

How to change the unit of measurement in WED X-Plane

To change the unit of measurement in WED X-Plane, you must first select the airport you want to edit. You can then enter basic information about the airport in the editing pane, including its elevation, ICAO identifier, and so on. By default, the elevation is in feet above mean sea level, but you can change this to meters by clicking the 'Meters' option in the View menu.

How to find an airport's elevation in WED X-Plane

To find an airport's elevation in WED X-Plane, select the airport in the map pane. This will bring up an editing pane where you can enter basic information about the airport. Using the Airnav database, you can find the airport's elevation, ICAO identifier, and so on. The elevation is in feet above mean sea level by default, but you can change this to meters by clicking the 'Meters' option in the View menu.

How to edit files in WED X-Plane

WED is not used to edit or create 3-D models of aircraft, buildings, or other objects in the world. To edit these files, use MeshTool, a command-line tool to build base meshes from raw data. For information on using 3-D modelling programs such as AC3D or Blender to create X-Plane objects, see the Third-Party Development section of the X-Plane Wiki, or download the Plane Maker manual.

To get started, visit the X-Plane Developer site and download the version of WED for your operating system. Save it to a location you will be able to find it, like the Desktop.

With the newly created airport selected, you can enter some basic information about it in the editing pane (beneath the hierarchy pane). Using the Airnav database, you can find the airport’s elevation, ICAO identifier, and so on. (Note that, by default, the elevation is in feet above mean sea level. You can change these measurements to meters by clicking the Meters option in the View menu.)

While the runway’s orientation with regard to true north is fixed, the orientation measured against magnetic north changes over time, as the magnetic pole moves and local magnetic declination changes.

How to create 3D models in WED X-Plane

WED is not used to create 3D models of aircraft, buildings, or other objects in the world. To create 3D models, you can use third-party 3D modelling programs such as AC3D or Blender. You can also download the Plane Maker manual for more information.

To create a 3D model in Blender, you can use the Blender-addon "io_xplane2blender" to export your model in X-Plane's .obj format. You can also use MeshTool, a command-line tool to build base meshes from raw data.

Once you have created your 3D model, you will need to place it in the correct folder in the WED hierarchy. Ensure that all buildings and other 3D objects are inside the folder that represents the airport. Set the “Target X‑Plane Version” in the File menu to “Airport Scenery Gateway”.

After placing your objects with WED, click "Save". All of your work in WED is saved in a file called earth.wed.xml. You then “export” your work, which creates the final scenery in a format usable by X‑Plane.

How to arrange flows in WED X-Plane

X-Plane will evaluate each of your flows in the order they appear in WED. This means that the top flow in the hierarchy is evaluated first, and the first flow in which all of the rules pass is selected. No further rules are considered. Therefore, it is important to arrange flows in WED with care, and generally with the most selective flow first.

For example, when the magnetic course of runway 11L changes from 114 to 115 degrees, airports paint new numbers on their runways. 11L-29R becomes 12L-30R. This change ends up in a data update for X-Plane, but it can be annoying to have to go through all your flows, taxiroutes, and airport signs to change the name everywhere.

Frequently asked questions