Airport CEO Alpha 36 released (The Emergency Update)

Oh no! With great airports comes great responsibility. The emergency update introduces up to 24 different types of emergency incidents which any professional airport CEO is expected to handle with ease… or at least try. With emergency response vehicles, structures, new tooling and new negotiating powers it’s time to build an operation that’s always on its toes.

In this update we’ve included:

• A plethora of different emergency scenarios ranging from emergency landings to staff strikes and power surges
• Fire trucks, ambulances, airport police cars, birds and animals
• An emergency response station, airport police station, radars and a brid strike prevention system
• Contract negotiations, multiple object selection and new tooling to analyze paths and zones of any kind
• Steam achievements
• A complete sound effect overhaul, bug fixes and UI improvements, new aircraft and much more…

Good luck, you’ll need it…

Release notes - Alpha 36.3-2

Epic

• [ACEO-28426] - Emergencies

New feature

• [ACEO-28427] - Airport police station
• [ACEO-28428] - Emergency response station
• [ACEO-28429] - Aircraft hangars
• [ACEO-28430] - Aircraft repairs
• [ACEO-28431] - Security patrols
• [ACEO-28434] - Emergency air ambulance airline
• [ACEO-28435] - Unionized employee salary negotiation
• [ACEO-28436] - Zone area analysis tool
• [ACEO-28437] - New emergency incident system
• [ACEO-28438] - Employee happiness score
• [ACEO-28439] - Large airport radar
• [ACEO-28440] - Medium airport radar
• [ACEO-28441] - Windsock
• [ACEO-28442] - Steam achievements
• [ACEO-28443] - Contract negotiations
• [ACEO-28445] - Job task supply and demand panel now more easily accessible in main interaction panel
• [ACEO-28446] - Ambulance
• [ACEO-28447] - Airport police car
• [ACEO-28448] - Fire truck
• [ACEO-28451] - Overall improved and balanced sound across all aspects of the airport environment
• [ACEO-28452] - Bird-strike prevention device
• [ACEO-28465] - Multiple item, structure and vehicle selection
• [ACEO-28893] - Path analysis tool
• [ACEO-29855] - Birds and animals
• [ACEO-31260] - Tutorial for security patrols added

Improvement

• [ACEO-19428] - Overhauled airline class and rating system
• [ACEO-28444] - Overhauled notification system
• [ACEO-28894] - "Runway entrance/exit" renamed to "runway ramp"
• [ACEO-29647] - Added statistics for passenger, baggage and aircraft in main interaction panel
• [ACEO-29779] - Vehicle preview in UI now update color in real time when changing color
• [ACEO-29854] - Added graphics setting for user based selection of zone overlay opacity
• [ACEO-31225] - Staff strike now has a lengthy cool down period of several days before being eligible for re-invocation
• [ACEO-31228] - Aircraft frequently stopping on taxiway due to path being blocked by land animals do now spawn world notifications
• [ACEO-31294] - Emergency flight assignment now overrides stand airline preference
• [ACEO-31433] - Updated animal sprite graphics
• [ACEO-31579] - Gameplay setting now allows for toggling time resuming to normal or not when an emergency occurs
• [ACEO-31703] - Graphics settings now re-implemented in in-game graphics settings menu
• [ACEO-31740] - Added clarifying animation to template button when saving a template
• [ACEO-31875] - A specific audio effect is now played when an emergency occurs
• [ACEO-32138] - Job task distrubtion system now uses metered time broker to improve performance
• [ACEO-32148] - Added extensive logging to detect issues with baggage services in rare cases being incorrectly switched off during load
• [ACEO-32161] - Stand display now displays if stand is attached to a terminal or not

Bug

• [ACEO-28536] - Various incorrect livery assignments
• [ACEO-28619] - Terminal numbers can in rare instances not default to lowest possible causing various exceptions
• [ACEO-28641] - Custom grids set to default vector size (0) should revert to original default grid size values
• [ACEO-28673] - Missing null reference check in shelf sprite population can cause rooms to disappear on reload
• [ACEO-28959] - Can't load more than 20 airline logotypes in item building panel
• [ACEO-31208] - Admins do not stop working when a staff strike is triggered
• [ACEO-31210] - Emergency response station has incorrect vehicle parking instruction
• [ACEO-31217] - Missing end time value on emergency can cause emergency timer container to not load properly
• [ACEO-31218] - Emergency tutorial step not always realizing that a hangar has been built
• [ACEO-31219] - De-icing build button missing icon
• [ACEO-31221] - Missing text variable in emergency report e-mail
• [ACEO-31223] - Radar tower build button missing header and description
• [ACEO-31234] - Staff can in rare instances remain on strike despite staff strike emergency being resolved
• [ACEO-31237] - Landing emergency aircraft can at certain points stall due to various null reference exceptions
• [ACEO-31238] - Uncaught null reference exception when loading stand display can cause UI to freeze
• [ACEO-31239] - GA aircraft affected by emergency on take-off can in most cases not land due to not being assigned a new arrival stand
• [ACEO-31240] - Incorrect bold formatting in emergency introduction e-mail
• [ACEO-31252] - Passive emergencies do not resolve correctly after loading a save with an active emergency
• [ACEO-31257] - Fence description incorrect
• [ACEO-31270] - Flight process panel notification icon can sometimes be displayed for GA aircraft
• [ACEO-31295] - Investigate button on UI notification container doesn't work
• [ACEO-31317] - Fire trucks not able to complete the second step on an extinguishing job task can get stuck
• [ACEO-31318] - Job task agents failing to execute a job task due to missing path does not correctly spawn world notifications
• [ACEO-31344] - Room does not update secure area number when merged with other secure zone
• [ACEO-31347] - Aircraft emergency on lift off can cause planned emergency return flights to have a series of multiple flights preventing it from being instantly plannable
• [ACEO-31371] - GA aircraft does not react when being dismissed from stand
• [ACEO-31376] - Incorrect "status closed" label on hangar UI panels when not serving an aircraft
• [ACEO-31377] - Dialog panel doesn't disappear properly when pressing enter instead of clicking buttons
• [ACEO-31381] - Emergency vehicles can in rare instances park on service vehicle parking lots
• [ACEO-31391] - Various world notifications spawned by aircraft on stand does not resolve themselves after turnaround termination
• [ACEO-31392] - Uncaught out of bounds exception when interacting with patrols can freeze the UI
• [ACEO-31401] - Interacting with the bulldozer function while game time is paused can cause various UI click issues
• [ACEO-31414] - Stand deactivated world notification not removed when activating
• [ACEO-31417] - Airport police car routes can incorrectly be plotted on public roads
• [ACEO-31437] - Toggle in gameplay panel setting now allows player to set if boarding desks automatically attach to stands or not
• [ACEO-31438] - Persistent vehicle engine sound not activated when vehicles are driving
• [ACEO-31441] - Failed deliveries reset too fast blocking other available deliveries causing delivery trucks not to offload goods
• [ACEO-31445] - Delay dialog containers can become visisble before loading background is hidden
• [ACEO-31451] - Path analysis tool can't cross secure or international zones
• [ACEO-31457] - E-mail introducing emergencies missing subject line
• [ACEO-31504] - Security patrol plotted in inaccessible areas spawn job tasks that can cause job task agents to get stuck in a job task fetch loop
• [ACEO-31505] - New construction material deliveries not reliably executed
• [ACEO-31572] - Patrols with only one route point can be incorrectly saved and activated
• [ACEO-31580] - Missing cursor image for patrol interaction
• [ACEO-31581] - Missing cursor image for path analysis tool
• [ACEO-31582] - Contractor path-finding system can in rare occasions cause the application to crash on quit
• [ACEO-31584] - Power surge incident does not resolve correctly after duration time has passed
• [ACEO-31688] - Tutorial text for patrol route step not accurate
• [ACEO-31690] - Added step label to completion percentage text on emergency investigation panel to better highlight how progression works
• [ACEO-31705] - Incorrect road node settings on emergency response station and airport police station can cause vehicles to get stuck
• [ACEO-31707] - Air ambulance "contracts" incorrectly displayed in contract panel
• [ACEO-31721] - Land animals can in rare occasions spawn on top of perimeter fences and enter the airport grounds
• [ACEO-31723] - Emergency flight turnaround time too long
• [ACEO-31728] - Hangars do not correctly display their allowed flight type
• [ACEO-31744] - Economy not properly counting cost causing imbalance in dsiplayed funds
• [ACEO-31747] - GA aircraft traffic continues despite active emergencies blocking commercial flights
• [ACEO-31748] - Saved templates spawn an incorrect (duplicate) copy of the entire template
• [ACEO-31777] - Steam achievement async callback issue can cause "quit to main menu" actions on Windows to freeze the application
• [ACEO-31809] - Uncaught null reference exception in job task distribution system can cause employees to stop claiming job tasks
• [ACEO-31848] - Stand assigned stair trucks do not always claim job task originating from their assigned stand
• [ACEO-31864] - Baggage bay displays incorrect world notification message when not staffed
• [ACEO-31865] - Hangars not unlocked with commercial license R&D project
• [ACEO-31867] - Loading a save with emergencies in a specific state can cause a stack overflow exception
• [ACEO-31871] - Aircraft can in rare instances deadlock inside hangars after repair completion
• [ACEO-31876] - Steam achievements incorrectly awarded in sandbox mode
• [ACEO-31877] - Persons can in rare occasions not pathfind across crosswalks
• [ACEO-31887] - Incorrect settings on road check-points can cause animals to in rare occasions sneak in
• [ACEO-31894] - Uncaught Steam achievements call during quit process can cause the application to crash
• [ACEO-31919] - If a boarding process is terminated without being completed job task is not resumed by other employees stalling the flight
• [ACEO-31920] - R&D system disregards admin on strike status
• [ACEO-31923] - "The scientist" achievement is immediately awarded when enabling sandbox mode
• [ACEO-31924] - Typo in description of airport utility building
• [ACEO-31972] - Walkalator direction arrows too faint
• [ACEO-31985] - Massive amounts of failed job tasks in distribution system for a certain employee type can cause distribution deadlocks
• [ACEO-32007] - Empty N/A emergency could in rare instances be spawned
• [ACEO-32017] - Missing assignment check when attempting to push back from hangar can cause aircraft to deadlock
• [ACEO-32037] - Enum typo on "air ambulance flight" causes string localization mismatch
• [ACEO-32055] - Aircraft not worthy emergency too frequent
• [ACEO-32058] - Desks do not properly respawn job tasks on reactivation after a power surge
• [ACEO-32071] - Forgotten debug feature disables player input until escape is pressed
• [ACEO-32090] - Missing passenger not onboard vehicle validation check can cause zone transitioning to not be invoked
• [ACEO-32102] - Fire trucks can in rare occasions travel immediately to stand without extinguishing aircraft fire
• [ACEO-32103] - Vehicles not parked at parking objects can in rare occasions be incorrectly displayed as parked
• [ACEO-32110] - Walls are built several times if overlapping while using template tool
• [ACEO-32111] - Achievements disabled for downloaded workshop saves to prevent accidental unlocks
• [ACEO-32119] - Several structures do not correctly set their grid area as unwalkable resulting in contractors and animals being able to pass through
• [ACEO-32123] - If placing a single wall tile (1x1) ontop of another, funds will be subtracted
• [ACEO-32124] - Boarding desk can unintentionally connect to a stand already handling flight deadlocking its connection
• [ACEO-32125] - Selecting multiple stands for activation toggling overrides airline setting
• [ACEO-32127] - Path analysis tool not always reliable when crossing multiple floors
• [ACEO-32129] - Template image capturing can in rare occasions fail
• [ACEO-32151] - Stands can in rare occasions randomly on load attempt to close themselves via dialog panel
• [ACEO-32157] - Bag drops flight bookings can in certain instances disappear after loading
• [ACEO-32158] - Missing null reference check on preferred desk override system can cause passengers to deadlock
• [ACEO-32166] - Missing null reference exception can in rare instances cause baggage loading procedures at baggage bay to break
• [ACEO-32173] - Airport staff cannot always begin check-in procedure causing flight turnaround process stall
• [ACEO-32177] - Burning aircraft on runway does not block runway after load
• [ACEO-32178] - Totalled aircraft dissappear when not extinguished
• [ACEO-32179] - NullReferenceException can in rare occasions be thrown while selecting a template to place
• [ACEO-32182] - Missing localization text value for a specific Spanish key
• [ACEO-32213] - Missing null reference check on boarding persons at transit structures can cause agent deadlock
• [ACEO-32215] - Uncaught out of bounds exception can cause aircraft planning and check-in allocation to break
• [ACEO-32218] - "Do a barrel roll" achievement isn't correctly awarded
• [ACEO-32223] - Weird movement of land animals in fast forward time due to incorrect update routine

Update notes

Emergencies

Emergencies are unplanned events that may occur at any time as you’re managing your airport. There are multiple different types of emergencies that impact your airport in multiple different ways, to learn more about emergencies you can easily read up on them 98.

However, emergencies will NOT be generated if any of the following criteria has NOT been met:

• The game has not been running for at least a few in-game hours
• The commercial license has not been researched

The frequency of emergencies are affected by the difficulty setting you chose when you started the airport. An easy setting means that emergencies are extremely rare, whereas an extreme setting means that emergencies are very common.

In order to properly handle all emergencies, you are highly suggested to research the emergency project and build the appropriate structures and procure the appropriate vehicles. As the emergencies are meant to be be explored and enjoyed we will not go into further details on how they work at this point.

Please note: The frequency of emergencies are something we’re still testing and balancing, and will continue to do throughout the remainder of this experimental testing period!

Animals

There are now both avian and ground animals roaming the airport grounds. Birds can cause bird strikes if not diverted from the runway take off area using a BSPS unit (bird strike prevention system).

Ground animals can also cause various issues if not properly contained such as stalled aircraft during taxiing. Ensure that these animals do not enter your airport by building fences, road check-points and roads as these objects block and scare ground animals. Security patrols will also exterminate ground animals on sight.

Multiple selection and tooling

Most objects can now be multiple selected by holding SHIFT while clicking the objects.

Buttons for testing the new path analysis tools, zone reader and plotting patrol routes (once the emergency project is researched) can be found in the building tool menu (where bulldozer and terminal zoning is located).

Steam achievements

Airport CEO now supports a wide array of different Steam achievements! They are live and visible via the Steam platform and can now be achieved.

Please note: All achievements previously earned on the experimental branch has been reset, this has been announced multiple times during the experimental testing phase and is done in order to ensure that everyone starts with a fair and clean slate.

Also note that any use of the development panel or development console will invalidate the save for any future achievement unlocks.

Future stabilization updates

While this update is not as substantial in terms of fundamental gameplay changing features as Alpha 35, it still contains a wide array of different types of features which also primarily disrupt existing functionality. We'll monitor the bug flow as a result of this deployment and provide bug fixing and balancing updates accordingly.

What happens now?

With this last final big content update, Airport CEO is now officially in beta! We'll be back next Wednesday (9th of September 2020) in a dev blog with more exact information on what the development pace will look like ahead and, more importantly, the first beta version of Airport CEO on the experimental branch, Beta 1.0-0.

We're very much looking forward to this new era of Airport CEO development and once and for all stabilizing and improving the game with a very, very thorough QA pass!

// Alexander, Fredrik & Olof - Apoapsis Studios