Route Demand

[SHAGRATHI]

I have been tracking the demand on smaller airports (size 3 and below) from 1980 to 2009 (DOTM and EC gameworlds) and I see some particular airports that never gain demand to specific airports, that in real life they do. I can talk specifically for my country (Greece) and I can give at least 7-8 airports that I know in real life that have flights from certain bigger airports to those some regular and some seasonal. I am sure this is true for other countries as well. Is there any reason why demand isn't added to those routes, maybe lack of information? It would be more realistic if for example all my country's airports (39) had demand at least for one destination, because the way things are right now at least 10 have 0 demand no matter the decade.. I am not saying them to be in the 50's or 100's, but at least some destinations that I know of have 20-30 people daily that flying from certain airports..If any admin or member could answer this question. 

Thanks,
Dimitris

[exchlbg]

Demands are calculated systematically and are dependent on real-life traffic for a destinct time-span for every airport.Traffic numbers are differentiated after local,regional international/intercontinental percentages. By combining these numbers demands between two airports are generated and afterwards adjusted to fit into game era. That´s why game numbers won´t match RL numbers, and Sami won´t change anything manually because you observed differences. Seasonal demands/traffic also don´t happen in this game.
It may be that with "city-based demand" some smaller connections will become flyable.Until then you will have to cope with given demands. Very often those theoretical demands are not served in RL, so air traffic in general shows higher numbers in this game than in RL.No need to additionally implement anything manually.

[freshmore]

I am fairly sure that somewhere way back sami has mentioned that where specific route pax are known, (E.g. Heathrow to JFK), then these numbers are used to give the demand for that route for a specific year after which these are adjusted to suit the game year. Maybe I am going mad but could enlighten me to whether I am right or wrong?

[exchlbg]

I am following the forums constantly and can´t remember I ever heard of something like that.
And if you think this through, how many reports about RL route volumes Sami is supposed to check and work into the game?
Traffic numbers in RL are much more inconsistant than in this game. They don´t reflect demands between airports properly, because they fully depend on RL airline service decisions. We are not re-playing RL in this game, as it would be very boring to have the same traffic patterns in every game world over again.

[Sanabas]

I'm sure that there are a few routes that are hard-coded, rather than taken from the domestic/SH/LH %. I do remember reading that, but I don't have a link. But I'm fairly sure it was only a few of them, and all of them really huge routes. Like TPE-HKG.

For the OP, do you mean routes from small greek airports to international destinations? If it's a greek airport listed as 100% domestic, there will never be any ingame demand to a non-greek airport.

[SHAGRATHI]

no, i am talking about small greek airports and saying that in real life there is a demand from those small airports to bigger greek airports all over the year and some only seasonal. I can say the same for airports in greenland I see no demand between domestic destinations, or the 2-3 biggest USA airports and greenland.

[Sanabas]

Seasonal demand isn't modelled.

Which airports? I'd be surprised to see a demand of 0 from small to large greek airport. I just looked at Corfu, it has a demand of at least ~10 to all the smaller airports, except for one of them with only 3 or 4. Not enough demand for a daily flight, but there is some.

[SHAGRATHI]

ok let me help you a bit.

Athens (the capital airport) has 0 demand to the following airports LGSY (Skyros), LGKS (Kasos), LGKA (Kastoria), LGKZ (Kozani), LGKJ (Kastelorizo), LGKY (Kalymnos), LGPL (AStypalaia), LGST (Sitia), LGBL (Volos). The fact in AWS is that route demand in most cases is higher than reality. There is no way that there are 100 people that want to fly daily from my hometown (Thessaloniki, LGTS) to Malaga, or Alicante or Manchester or Mallorca or Brussels. On the other hand there are flights at least from the capital LGAV to LGKS, LGKJ, LGKY, LGPL, LGST, and some from my place LGTS to some of those remote places. My point is that those small airports exist and offer flights to some other airports maybe 2-3 total, but do. For example LGKZ is the smallest in Greece and has 0 demand anywhere in the world, then why does it exist? I am not saying that it has to have a demand for domestic destinations, but at least for some int shorthaul. For example the airports I mentioned have minimal demand from my hometown which is the 2nd biggest by population but they have flights int flights especially during the summer from Germany, Austria, England etc. It would make it more realistic if those small and remote airports had the opportunity to offer demand even 20 as it is in reality but not 0...and they fly those from LGAV throughout the year, they have to, those routes are funded by the government as well.

[Sanabas]

ok let me help you a bit.

Athens (the capital airport) has 0 demand to the following airports LGSY (Skyros), LGKS (Kasos), LGKA (Kastoria), LGKZ (Kozani),

I just looked at those 4 in Eurochallenge, and all of them have a little bit of demand. Only 5-10/day, so not enough for a daily flight. But if the demand model could handle a couple of flights/week, rather than individual days, then you'd probably see flights happening ingame as well.