Xīn lóng International Airport - West Pier & Gate Sizing

My recent efforts have been centred around more detailing on what has been named the 'West Pier' and a start on the painting of the pier itself. This is probably a good time to discuss gate sizing also. Gate sizes are mandated by both the FAA and ICAO however lots of older airports (like La Guardia) have odd gate sizes for historical reasons and when you're creating a size limited diorama the standards can be annoying - especially if you have lots of 757s.

Painting of the pier was done using xxx. I originally masked off the sides as I was thinking that I might keep them transparent, however without building a complete interior for them this looked a bit odd so I will have to create the windows differently - probably in the same way I have done previously with printed windows stuck on the body.

I also completed the gate outlining on the narrowbody gates of the West Pier plus the white hashing on the proximal end of the pier. As you can see above I plan on using Gemini jetbridges - though I'll have to modify how they connect to the pier itself. I started at least to begin to see where they might fit with the end A380 gate being a minor challenge since I want it to also be able to service at least one of the alternate 757 gates (the gate can fit 2 757s or an A380). The widebody piers will of course be double airbridges.

The narrowbody gates on the inside of the pier can fit a 737NG / A320 sized aircraft and 2 757s. FAA and ICAO gate sizes have the 737NG fitting into Size III and C gates respectively, however I have found that though the 757 fits in the same Size IV and D gate categories with the 767 it has a smaller wingspan intermediate between the two gate sizes. I have taken to creating gates that fit the 757 as the jump in size to the 767/A300/DC-10 size is quite significant and typically causes space issues on my dioramas.

The 747 and 777 fit within FAA Group V or ICAO Code E gates whilst the A380 fits within Group VI and Code F gates.