Airport Import/Export

Import and export airports with load factor assignments, container availability, and SimBrief alternate settings.

Staff
Last verified: January 28, 2026

The Airport importer and exporter let you bulk manage the airports your airline operates from. You can configure taxi times, mark hubs, assign load factors and containers, and set SimBrief alternate search preferences.

Import Dependencies First

Create Load Factors and Containers before importing airports that reference them. The importer validates that all referenced IDs exist.

Accessing Import/Export

In Orwell, go to Data → Exports to download your airports as CSV, or Data → Imports to upload changes.

Column Reference

Core Columns

Column

Required

Description

ICAO/IATA

Yes

Airport identifier (ICAO 4-character or IATA 3-character code). Used to match records for updates.

Name

Yes

Display name for the airport in your airline

Category

No

Custom category for organizing airports

Base

No

TRUE if this is a base/hub airport

Suitable Alternate

No

TRUE if this airport can be used as an alternate

Airport Briefing URL

No

Link to external airport briefing or charts

Taxi In Minutes

No

Default taxi time from runway to gate

Taxi Out Minutes

No

Default taxi time from gate to runway

Preferred Alternates

No

Comma-separated list of preferred alternate ICAO codes

_delete

Yes

Set to TRUE to delete, FALSE otherwise

Load Factor Columns

Assign load factors to control passenger and cargo load calculations for flights at this airport. Load factors must be created first via Data → Load Factors.

Column

Description

Passenger LF ID

Load factor ID for passenger count calculation

Luggage LF ID

Load factor ID for passenger luggage weight

Cargo (Weight) LF ID

Load factor ID for cargo weight calculation

Cargo (Volume) LF ID

Load factor ID for cargo volume calculation

Container Column

Column

Description

Container IDs

Comma-separated container IDs available at this airport

SimBrief Alternate Settings

Configure how SimBrief searches for alternates when this airport is the destination.

Column

Description

SB Alt Radius

Search radius in nautical miles for alternate airports

SB Alt Min Ceiling

Minimum ceiling height in feet for alternate selection

SB Alt Min Rwy Length

Minimum runway length in feet for alternate selection

SB Alt Avoid Bad Weather

TRUE to exclude alternates with thunderstorms, freezing conditions

SB Alt Exclude Airports

ICAO codes to exclude from alternate search (space or comma-separated)

SB Takeoff Altn ICAO/IATA

Specified takeoff alternate airport

SB Altn 1-4 ICAO/IATA

Up to 4 specific destination alternates (columns 1 through 4)

Info Columns (Export Only)

These columns appear in exports for reference but are ignored during import.

  • Info-Airport ID - Internal vAMSYS record ID

  • Info-Airport ICAO - World airport ICAO code

  • Info-Airport IATA - World airport IATA code

  • Info-Created, Info-Updated - Timestamps

Adding Airports

  1. Enter the ICAO or IATA code in the ICAO/IATA column (must exist in world airports)

  2. Fill in the required Name column

  3. Add optional settings (taxi times, load factors, etc.)

  4. Set _delete to FALSE

Updating Airports

  1. Export existing airports

  2. Modify the columns you need to change

  3. Keep the ICAO/IATA column intact (this identifies the record)

  4. Ensure _delete is FALSE

Airport Identification

Unlike Aircraft and Fleet which use internal IDs, Airports are identified by their ICAO/IATA code. The same code in a new import updates the existing airport rather than creating a duplicate.

Deleting Airports

  1. Export the airports you want to delete

  2. Set _delete to TRUE for those rows

  3. Import the file

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