Hamburg has a long tradition, not only in real life but also in flight simulation. The airfield https://www.hamburg-airport.de with the IATA and ICAO codes HAM and EDDH was opened in January 1911, then as a 45-hectare mooring area for airships. Meanwhile, the airport has expanded to 570 hectares and cannot be extended any further due to the adjacent buildings.
The two nearly perpendicular intersecting concrete and asphalt runways 05/23 (3,250 by 46 meters) and 15/33 (3,666 by 46 meters) are available. They have the following equipment:
| Runway | ILS | Approach Lighting | Touchdown Zone Lighting | PAPI | REIL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 05 | CAT I | ALSF-I | – | left | yes |
| 15 | CAT I | ALSF-I | – | left | yes |
| 23 | CAT IIIb | ALSF-II | yes | left | yes |
| 33 | – | ALSF-I | – | left | yes |
All runways can be approached using RNP procedures or, in good weather, visually.
Terminals 1 and 2 are available, designed from the outside as three segments but structurally seamlessly connected. On the airside of Terminal 1, there is a terrace for spotters.
At the terminals, 14 parking positions with passenger bridges are available. Apron 1 offers 14 remote positions, Apron 1 South twelve as well as Apron 2 at the terminal satellite. On the remote positions, passenger stairs are used, and buses transport passengers. There are 26 parking spaces available for general aviation.
Lufthansa Technik operates a significant maintenance facility south and west of the tower.
The operator, Flughafen Hamburg GmbH, reports for 2024 the transport of 14,831,711 passengers and 30,073 tons of air freight with 126,968 flights.
Simulation
The legendary German Airport Team (Peter Hiermeier † and Thomas Hirsch) became known for German Airports 1 to 4. Hamburg Airport was included in Part 3 and was last completely updated in 2012 for FS 2004, FS X, and FSX:SE. In 2017, there was an update to P3D v4, including implementation of the then-new gate positions, new signage, and new taxiway designations (FS MAGAZIN 1/2017) by Peter Hiermeier and Oliver Pabst. In editions 3/2017 and 5/2020, the usual error-prone interpretations by JustSim were written about, and in FS MAGAZIN 1/2021 about the Sim-Wings version for P3D v4 and v5. That left the competition far behind, and was deservedly awarded the editorial recommendation.
Thorsten Loth and Oliver Pabst presented the airport for MSFS 2020 in April 2021 – see the “Airport Update Special.” Again, with the spotters’ café “Coffee to Fly,” which former FS MAGAZIN author Frank Schmidt contributed. Similar to the professional versions for P3D v4 and v5, the place shines (shone) with high detail density. Besides all the buildings within the airport fence, several buildings in the periphery, such as the Hamburg Airport Cargo Center (HACC) in final for runway 33, were created.
At the end of June 2025, Sim-Wings released htttps:/aerosoft.com Hamburg Airport for the X-Plane 12 at Aerosoft. The port is based on the implementation of Sim Wings for MSFS 2020 and was carried out by X-Plane specialists Raphael Jakob from Aerosoft and ‘FlyAgi’ known from the net.
Installation of the airport, compatible with Windows 10 and 11 as well as Linux and macOS 10.15+, is done via Aerosoft One https://one.aerosoft.com. The scenery takes up 2.6 GB of storage and can be used after the next X-Plane 12 start.
The scenery has been seamlessly integrated into its surroundings. After comparing with current satellite images, all buildings are present at their real-world locations – which applies to, among others, the Hamburg police helicopter hangar, general aviation terminal, HACC, and the spotters’ café. The airport layout is accurate, as is the night lighting. There is also plenty of signage. So taxiing the wrong way should be difficult.
The landside area was also implemented in detail – including the parking garages and the basement level. Lighting is coherent and plausible; ground traffic is as well. Even when using larger aircraft, performance is flawless.
Identified Problems
- The antenna for the DME ALSTER ALF 118.50 MHz at the glide path transmitter for ILS runway 23 is missing.
- The 707 by the fire station still virtually stands – in reality, it was dismantled in the second half of 2021 and its parts sold to fans:
https://www.stern.de/reise/follow-me/boeing-707-hamburg-30570540.html
Raphael Jakob is considering making the aircraft optionally visible. A good idea, since there are still many fans of the old Boeing. Like me …
Availability
https://secure.simmarket.com/aerosoft-airport-hamburg-xp12-(de_20197).phtml
Additions
- An AI traffic injector such as Traffic Global (X-Plane 11/12 Windows) should definitely be used for proper air and ground traffic.
- The freeware “Orthophoto Scenery Hamburg” https://x-plane.to/file/195/orthophoto-scenery-hamburg by “chrima83” at x-plane.to is recommended and …
- … also the free scenery “X-World Europe” by SimHeaven, as well as …
- … the freeware “Hamburg City” by “hnnau64” at X-Plane.org
Conclusion
Already quite good for X-Plane, to revive the FS MAGAZIN “running gag.” In other words: Very well implemented, Raphael …
This airport is a “must have” for X-Planers who enjoy flying over virtual Germany: Gold medal!
Bert Groner
July 2025
… If you want, you can: paypal.me/BertGroner
Information
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flughafen_Hamburg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamburg_Airport
Navigation Charts
Freeware
German Air Traffic Control (DFS)
Payware (subscription – optionally with flight navigation data)
Navigraph
