Howto:Working with FlightGear models in Blender
FlightGear uses the AC3D file format for its models. AC3D files are denoted by the .ac file extension. It is a niche legacy format native to the AC3D modelling software, and its adoption is not widespread in computer graphics (being used mainly by X-Plane[1] and FlightGear). This lead to support for the format eventually being removed from Blender. In order to work with models in the AC3D format in Blender, and thus do any modeling work for the FlightGear project, the use of an add-on is required.
Installing the Blender add-on for AC3D models
The Blender-AC3D add-on is one such add-on that allows AC3D models to be used in Blender. It is open-source and licensed under the GNU GPL. The add-on is hosted on GitHub and can be accessed here: Blender-AC3D.
To install the Blender-AC3D add-on, you can follow these steps:
1. Download the correct version of the Blender add-on for your version of Blender. You can download the add-on at: https://github.com/NikolaiVChr/Blender-AC3D/releases/latest
2. Next, you will need to navigate to Edit > Preferences, select Get extensions from the side-bar, click "Install from disk" and select the downloaded ZIP file (no need to extract it). If you want to install it manually, here are the steps to place the add-on (the extracted io_scene_ac3d folder from the ZIP file) in the correct directory:
- For Linux users, the location may be in one of two places. If you installed it through your package manager, it will be the first path. If you installed Blender as a Flatpak, it will be the second path.
~/.config/blender/x.x/scripts/addons. - For Windows users, the location is:
C:\Users\yourusername\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\x.x\scripts\addons - For macOS users, the location is:
Macintosh HD/Users/yourusername/Library/Application Support/Blender/x.x/scripts/addons - Then restart Blender.
3. Navigate to Edit > Preferences, and select Add-ons from the side-bar. If you downloaded the correct version of the add-on, and place it in the right location, you should see it in the list of available add-ons. 4. Select the checkbox next to AC3D (.ac) format to enable the plugin. This step is critical, otherwise the add-on won't actually become active.
| Note The add-on will not be active after installing, you should manually enable it. |
5. Once you have enabled the Blender add-on, restart Blender.
If you have completed the above steps and see the "File > Import > AC3D (.ac)" menu, the Blender-AC3D add-on is correctly installed and ready for use.
Importing models
- Once the add-on is installed, AC3D models can be imported in the same fashion as any model format supported by Blender. To import a model, navigate to File > Import > AC3D (.ac).
| Note If you do not see the option to import AC3D models, the add-on either has not been correctly installed, or enabled. |
- A file chooser dialog will appear. Select your AC3D (
.ac) file and select Import AC3D.
Editing models
See the official manual of Blender for more info.
Exporting models
Once the add-on is installed, AC3D models can be exported in the same manner as any other model format into Blender.
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