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We're experimenting with this for the "May the fourth be with you" group flight. Just like in Free Flight, when you can set the season, date, time and the weather in great detail, we may be able to arrange for the same thing on the server for everyone.
For the experiment, we have set the date for the "May the fourth be with you" group flight in the Rocky Mountains to mid-September. The event-based reason for that is to give a sprinkling of colorful golden fall trees on the mountainsides. But that was the easy part!
Normally the server reflects real-world weather. But just like in Free Flight, we've overridden it for this experiment. We've set the surface winds to be light and winds aloft to be moderate, with any wind based around a particular direction. That's to make take-off and landings easier for the event, which uses four high altitude runways at very different orientations. We've also modified the cloud cover to be sparse cumulus at low altitude and more dense cirrus at high altitude to ensure that mountain airports are not completely obscured.
When you set up custom weather, you can specify where it applies. Because there are four airports involved in this event, separated by quite a few miles, we've specified these weather settings for everywhere. However "everywhere" means for everywhere in the world, and it may give you uncharacteristically calm weather in some places for a while! Naturally, after the event and the experiment is over, the server will be restarted and returned to real-world weather as normal.
If you are planning an event, such as a group flight or an airshow, and you feel it would be best served with particular weather characteristics, or that it would be best at a particular time and date, do consider contacting a server administrator about it. Work out exactly beforehand how you would set up those flight conditions on your own in Free Flight, and either write them down in detail or be prepared to walk/talk through the set-up with an administrator live. And be prepared to flight test them if they get installed.
Of course, there's no guarantee that you'll get your wish, especially for more dramatic weather! I'm sure none of us want to cause disruption outside the event. And if such requests become too frequent, there may be some push-back from admins and pilots alike. But it may be worth considering and discussing.
For the experiment, we have set the date for the "May the fourth be with you" group flight in the Rocky Mountains to mid-September. The event-based reason for that is to give a sprinkling of colorful golden fall trees on the mountainsides. But that was the easy part!
Normally the server reflects real-world weather. But just like in Free Flight, we've overridden it for this experiment. We've set the surface winds to be light and winds aloft to be moderate, with any wind based around a particular direction. That's to make take-off and landings easier for the event, which uses four high altitude runways at very different orientations. We've also modified the cloud cover to be sparse cumulus at low altitude and more dense cirrus at high altitude to ensure that mountain airports are not completely obscured.
When you set up custom weather, you can specify where it applies. Because there are four airports involved in this event, separated by quite a few miles, we've specified these weather settings for everywhere. However "everywhere" means for everywhere in the world, and it may give you uncharacteristically calm weather in some places for a while! Naturally, after the event and the experiment is over, the server will be restarted and returned to real-world weather as normal.
If you are planning an event, such as a group flight or an airshow, and you feel it would be best served with particular weather characteristics, or that it would be best at a particular time and date, do consider contacting a server administrator about it. Work out exactly beforehand how you would set up those flight conditions on your own in Free Flight, and either write them down in detail or be prepared to walk/talk through the set-up with an administrator live. And be prepared to flight test them if they get installed.
Of course, there's no guarantee that you'll get your wish, especially for more dramatic weather! I'm sure none of us want to cause disruption outside the event. And if such requests become too frequent, there may be some push-back from admins and pilots alike. But it may be worth considering and discussing.