  The Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) represents the next generation of ground
based instruments for Very High Energy gamma-ray astronomy. It is expected to
improve on the sensitivity of current instruments by an order of magnitude and
provide energy coverage from 20 GeV to more than 200 TeV. In order to achieve
these ambitious goals Monte Carlo (MC) simulations play a crucial role, guiding
the design of CTA. Here, results of the second large-scale MC production are
reported, providing a realistic estimation of feasible array candidates for
both Northern and Sourthern Hemisphere sites performance, placing CTA
capabilities into the context of the current generation of High Energy
$\gamma$-ray detectors.
