Satellite image airports

  • One of my hobbies is trying to identify small airports in the simulator. This one is a 600-meter-long grass airfield near Pilis.


    The airfield in the simulator.


    A traffic pattern around the airfield. Take-off, landing, and taxiing with the Robin are also possible on this terrain. The trees next to the airfield help a lot in sensing the altitude.

    External Content youtu.be
    Content embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.
    Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.

    And this link:

    AIS EN - VFR Manual - Pilis Repülőtér - LHPL

    Edit:

    To demonstrate how accurate the location of trees in the simulator is, here is a photo of the original Pilis airfield.

    Edited once, last by Small Planes (January 21, 2026 at 10:43 AM).

  • I had to try out if I could still do airfields - have fun.:)

    Files

    Tschüss, Michael (🍎🚁)

    Configurations:

    - MacBook Pro (16", 2024); Chip: Apple M4 Max; actual macOS
    - Controllers: | WinWing: URSA MINOR-Fighter-Joystick R, EFIS-L & FCU & EFIS-R | Thrustmaster TCA AIRBUS EDITION: 2x Quadrant, 2x Quadrant Add-On | Pro-Flight-Trainer: PUMA X | Steelseries: Nimbus+

    - iPad (12,9", 4th Generation, RAM: 6 GB); actual iOS | Steelseries: Nimbus+

  • LHTL

    Tököl Airport traces its origins back to the period of the Second World War.The airfield was constructed between 1940 and 1941 for military purposes. Initially it was used by the Royal Hungarian Air Force, and later, during the latter stages of the war, by the German Luftwaffe. Owing to its strategic location, it played an important role in the air defense of Budapest and in regional air operations. A unique legacy from this period is a large aircraft weighing platform, designed to allow an aircraft to taxi onto it so that its weight and center-of-gravity position could be determined.

    After World War II, the airport was divided both functionally and territorially. The western part of the airfield came under Soviet control, while the eastern section remained in Hungarian hands. During this time, the Pestvidéki Gépgyár was located on the Hungarian side of the airport, where maintenance, servicing, and major overhauls of aircraft and helicopters of the Hungarian Armed Forces were carried out.

    Following the withdrawal of Soviet troops in the early 1990s, the airport lost its military role. It was subsequently transitioned to civilian use. Today, Tököl Airport operates as a general aviation airfield, supporting light aircraft operations, flight training, parachuting, gliding, and recreational flying.

    At present, Tököl Airport is an important center of Hungarian general aviation, while its history represents a significant chapter in the country’s military aviation heritage.


    Traffic pattern for Runway 32. (From the airport rules)
    When Runway 32 is in use, the traffic pattern shall be flown as follows:

    First turn: Initiate the first turn upon reaching the eastern bank of the Danube.

    Second turn: Initiate the second turn after crossing the Danube. Due to noise abatement procedures, flight over the nature reserve is prohibited. The downwind leg runs north and northeast of the town of Tököl, with heading toward the water tower.


    Third turn: Initiate the third turn after crossing the Tököl HÉV (suburban railway) line. The base leg is oriented toward the twin chimneys of the industrial area.

    The descent shall be planned so that, upon reaching the area over the town of Szigethalom, engine power is reduced to the minimum possible, while carefully monitoring engine temperatures.

    For Runway 32, the displaced threshold (located at taxiway A2) must be taken into account during training flights (touch-and-go operations). A full-stop landing may be planned to the original Runway 32 threshold only if the pilot-in-command can safely conduct the approach over the town of Szigethalom at idle power, or at minimum engine power required to keep the engine warm.

    Note:

    I am on iOS, and the detail of the landscape is truly impressive with ultra graphics settings, even at a resolution worse than Western Europe.

  • Small Planes January 19, 2026 at 4:58 PM

    Changed the title of the thread from “LHPL, a satellite image airfield.” to “Satellite image airports”.
  • LHKV (easier to pronounce🙂) can be plotted in SkyVector.com from Small Planes’ chart latitude and longitude.

    For a VOR fix (it actually turned out to be 028 To at 31 DME in the sim).


    And a NDB (in the modern era with many NDBs deleted the nearby airfield was good enough for the 133 degrees bearing in SkyVector).


    The ‘dry’ lakes are just no good for visual navigation in Aerofly. Can you spot a long thin big one near the destination?



    The numbers more or less worked out. The final DME at 31 nm and the NDB at 133 degrees (the yellow double needle) were very good.

  • Funny how the nearby TASZÁR closed airfield is defined much more clearly in Aerofly.

    Taszár is clearly visible on the satellite image because it was a Hungarian MiG-21 military concrete airport. During the Yugoslav war, there was also a NATO base here. LHKV is a sports airport, and in the past it was also a rural base of the MÉM agricultural Air Service. (The central airport was in Budaőrs, the rural base airports were in Nyíregyháza(*), Kaposújlak, Őcsény(*) and Maklár.)

    * = Included in simulator.

    Edited once, last by Small Planes (January 20, 2026 at 10:46 AM).

  • From Pipishegy airport (LHGY), in favorable conditions, you can do wave soaring with a glider. This allows you to climb to a high altitude. That is why wave patrols are held here in the winter months. When the lenticular clouds appear, glider pilots from all over the country come here, who, for example, lack the 5000-meter clear height for their diamond badge. They usually take off from a tow and release around 1000 meters AGL (3300 ft). If they manage to climb to an altitude of 6000 m AGL (20000 ft), they have their diamond badge.

  • LHSS Szolnok Szandaszőlős.

    Near the Szolnok military airport LHSN (where military pilots from the officer school are trained) is the Szolnok sports airport LHSS, which is owned by the Szolnok flying club.

    The airport is next to the busy M4 road. A PZL M-15 Belpegor was exhibited here on a platform until March 2014. The interesting thing about the plane is that it is the only jet agricultural aircraft in the world. It has never flown in Hungary.

    This aircraft did not work out, it was not produced in series, and only a few intact copies remained. That is why the Polish aircraft factory PZL applied for it. The Belphegor was exchanged with the Hungarian Goldtimer Foundation for a new AS62 radial engine, which was installed in the Foundation's Li-2 aircraft.


    Returning to the history of the LHSS airport, after the great Tisza flood of 1974, the hangar was raised to the highest height above flood level ever.

    AIS EN - VFR Manual - Szolnok-Szandaszőlős Repülőtér - LHSS

    Edited 2 times, last by Small Planes (January 30, 2026 at 11:07 PM).