How do I fix blocked tower views at airports in FSX?

Tower view “blocked by a building” in FSX

Yep, this is a pretty common FSX annoyance. In most cases it’s not something “broken” on your install — it’s simply where the airport’s tower camera point was placed, and at a lot of airports it ends up inside/behind a nearby terminal or other object.

Here are a few practical things you can try:

1) Try the other tower viewpoints (if the airport has them)
Some airports have more than one tower camera position.

• Go to Tower view as usual.
• Then use the “next/previous view” keys (whatever you’ve got assigned for cycling views) to see if FSX gives you another tower spot that isn’t obstructed.

2) “Nudge” the tower camera with the eyepoint controls
FSX lets you shift the camera a bit (depending on view mode/assignments).

• Once in Tower view, try the eyepoint movement keys you use in the VC (the ones that move your viewpoint forward/back/left/right/up/down).
• If they work in Tower view on your setup, you can usually move yourself just enough to clear the building.

If you’re not sure what those keys are on your machine, check:

• Settings -> Controls -> Buttons/Keys, and look for the “Eyepoint” commands.

3) If it’s happening mainly at add-on airports, it’s likely the scenery
A lot of add-on sceneries move buildings around but don’t update the tower camera location, so the default “tower” point ends up blocked.

• Quick test: does this happen at default FSX airports too (like KSEA, KORD, etc.), or only at payware/freeware airports you installed?

4) The “real” fix: adjust the tower viewpoint in the airport’s AFCAD
This is the proper way, but it requires an airport editor (AFCAD-type tool). You basically move the “Tower Viewpoint” (latitude/longitude/altitude) to a better spot.

I can walk you through that, but I need a bit more info first so I don’t send you down the wrong path:

• Which FSX version are you on (RTM / SP1 / SP2 / Acceleration)?
• Is this happening at all airports (including default), or mostly add-on airports?
• Name one or two specific airports where it’s worst (and whether they’re default or add-on).

Answer those and I’ll suggest the cleanest fix for your exact case.