Real-life GPX data

Tacview is a great training tool when used with flight simulations; it can be – as well – used for real life flights training and debriefing! It is as simple as exporting your flights in the widely supported GPX (GPS Exchange Format) file format and opening them in Tacview.

From transcontinental flights to local traffic patterns, review and analyse at a glimpse any real-life flight! Visualize as many aircraft as you want in the same world and enjoy the power of all the analysis tools offered by Tacview.

The use of each specific GPS is beyond the scope of this article. However, almost all modern GPS are offering an option to record and export tracking data in the universalGPXfile format. With most GPS, all you have to do, is to connect your device to a computer and import the GPX files of your choice. Open the file in Tacview using the File → Open command and merge additional files using the File→Merge command.

Support of GPX files is a feature of Tacview Standard.

Aircraft Name and Color

You can easily display the proper aircraft name and shape in the 3D view by changing the name of the corresponding GPS track (for example: C-172R Skyhawk). The same way, you can also change the track color. All of this can easily be accomplished using a GPX file editor such as Garmin BaseCamp or by manually editing theGPXfile using a raw text editor like Notepad++.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?><?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<gpx version="1.1">
  <trk>
    <name>C-172R Skyhawk (Lt. Topper Harley)</name>
    <extensions>
      <gpxx:TrackExtension>
        <gpxx:DisplayColor>Blue</gpxx:DisplayColor>
      </gpxx:TrackExtension>
    </extensions>
    <trkseg>
      ...
    </trkseg>
  </trk>
</gpx>

Additional Considerations when Using GPX Files

If you are using flight decks like the Garmin G1000, or if your GPS cannot export your flight in the GPX file format, consider the CSV file format which is natively supported by Tacview. More technical skills are required to generate a CSV file, but it may be easier to convert proprietary data into this format.

Furthermore, GPX files usually contain only a limited amount of distinct information. For instance, they may typically not contain aircraft orientation data like roll, pitch, and yaw. If you want to analyse this kind of data accurately, then you should consider the CSV file format which is more technical and comprehensive. If the limitation is coming from your GPS, you may also want to consider buying a more advanced recording device producing more complete files like the Stratus 2S.

Terrain Textures and Terrain Elevation

To add terrain textures and terrain elevation files, see the customization - terrain documentation