vPAR QuadRadar - Approach Editor
March 1, 2005
Michael Oxner


In vPAR, you have a facility to allow you to add, modify and delete approaches. Admittedly, the "Add" feature is limited. It doesn't read state data from Flight Simulator, so setting up an approach still should be done with the vPAR Transponder, unless you have really good data to work from. The "Modify" and "Delete" features may be of use, though. I expect this editor to be welcome, as the format for the Approaches.ini file is *quite* specific and error prone. This will hopefully remove any problems people have had in the past with managing approaches.

This is a look at the Approach Editor facility in vPAR. A list box occupies the left side of the dialog and in here are the approaches from the Approaches.ini file, listed in alphabetical order. This list of approaches is loaded fresh when you open this dialog, which can be accomplished by the Setup menu item, or by the associated keyboard shortcut, <CTRL>+<E>. Initially, the details of the approach on the right will all be blank boxes. If you click on an approach in the list box on the left, the details for that approach will show up in the boxes on the right. You have the option of filling in the boxes with your own data, or clicking on an existing approach and then modifying one, some, or all of the details.

If you have modified the details, or entered new details from scratch, you can now save a new approach with the "Add Approach" button. This will check the existing approaches in the Approaches.ini file to ensure no other approach exists with that name. All of the approaches must have a unique name. I recommend the airport designator and runway, and then perhaps some note about the scenery, like Flight Sim version(since some airports have moved slightly from one version to the next in the default scenery in some cases) or a note about the specific add-on scenery you used to get the details. When you click "Add Approach", the program will save the details under the name you entered in the Approach box at the top right. If the name already exists in the Approaches.ini file, the program will warn you that an approach with this name already exists, and ask you if you want to overwrite it with the new details. Upon saving the details, the new approach name will appear in the list box on the left, always at the bottom, and the details boxes will clear, getting ready for your next operation. The changes you make will not be saved to the file until you close the Approach Editor dialog.

If you clicked on an approach and just modified one or a few details, you can commit those changes to the Approaches.ini file. Simply click the "Modify and Save Approach" button. When you click this button, the approach name will be removed from the list box and re-inserted at the bottom, giving you a reminder that you modified this approach. As with the "Add Approach" button, the boxes will clear to prepare for your next operation when you click the "Modify" button. The changes you make will not be saved to the file until you close the Approach Editor dialog.

Deleting approaches is easy. Simply select the approach from the list box by clicking on it. The details will show up in the boxes on the right, giving you a chance to confirm that you have selected the approach you want to delete. When you're sure, click the "Delete Approach" button. The program will prompt you to confirm the delete function, since there is no undo. The approach is removed from memory permanently, and the entry removed from the list box. When you close the dialog box, the list of approaches will be saved by overwriting the Approaches.ini file, leaving out the deleted approach. If you click delete and hit OK by accident, or if you OK a delete of the wrong approach, the only way to save what you had before is to rename the Approaches.ini file you have now, or copy it somewhere else, *before* you close the Approach Editor.

The rest of the buttons are self-explanatory. I hope this facility comes in handy for you approach managers.