Learn what Aerosoft NavDataPro does, how to install AIRAC data in compatible flight sims, use its charts and fix cycle or path mismatches.
Aerosoft NavDataPro is a flight-simulation service that supplies AIRAC navigation databases and aeronautical charts. The database updates compatible simulators and aircraft flight-management systems (FMS); NavDataPro Charts displays airport, SID, STAR, approach and en-route charts. Install the data into each supported target, then use the charts separately to plan, brief and verify the flight.
What does Aerosoft NavDataPro provide?
NavDataPro has two related components, and confusing them causes most setup problems.
| Component | What it provides | What it does not do |
|---|---|---|
| Navigation data | Coded navaids, fixes, airways, frequencies, airport records, SIDs, STARs and approaches for supported simulators and add-ons. | It does not update scenery, move runways, improve terrain or automatically update every installed aircraft. |
| NavDataPro Charts | Human-readable Lido-format airport, procedure and en-route charts for planning and cockpit reference. | Opening a chart does not load that procedure into the FMS or alter the simulator database. |
Navigation data is published in AIRAC cycles, each based on a 28-day effective period. The simulator, aircraft, flight planner and charts can each be using a different cycle, even on the same computer. Our explanation of AIRAC cycles and legal update options covers why database files and charts are separate products.
Access depends on the NavDataPro package or licence held. Do not assume that purchasing navigation data includes chart access, or that a chart entitlement includes installers for every FMS.
How do you install NavDataPro navigation data?
Install NavDataPro into the exact simulator or aircraft target that reads the database, rather than choosing a destination merely because its folder looks plausible.
- Identify the database consumer. Determine whether the aircraft uses the simulator's database or its own dedicated FMS files. The aircraft documentation, NavDataPro compatibility list and FMS status page are more reliable than the installation folder name.
- Select the required AIRAC cycle. Use the same cycle in the aircraft, charts and external planner where possible. Retain the previous dataset until the new one has been checked.
- Close the simulator and related applications. An open simulator, planner or aircraft utility can lock database files or leave an old database cached in memory.
- Choose the supported target. Let the delivery application detect the installation when possible. Use a custom path only when you know the add-on's actual database root; never force files intended for one product into another.
- Repeat the installation for separate targets. Updating the simulator does not necessarily update an aircraft with its own FMS database, and updating one aircraft does not update another.
- Restart and verify the cycle. Load the aircraft and inspect the FMS identification or status page. Confirm that the active database shows the intended cycle and valid effective dates.
If the licence is delivered through Aerosoft's product manager, our Aerosoft ONE setup and product-management guide explains installation, sign-in and library handling without guessing menu paths that vary between releases.
Microsoft Flight Simulator needs extra care because its built-in planner, simulator-level database and a complex add-on aircraft may not all read the same source. A package offered for one target does not automatically replace the others; see our Microsoft Flight Simulator navdata guide for that platform-specific distinction.
How do you use NavDataPro Charts during a flight?
Use NavDataPro Charts to brief and verify the coded route, not as a substitute for loading the correct procedure into the FMS.
- Search by ICAO code. Open the departure, destination or alternate airport and choose the airport, SID, STAR or approach chart required.
- Check the chart identity. Verify the airport, runway, procedure name, transition and revision or effective date. Similar procedure names can lead to different runways or initial fixes.
- Load the procedure through the FMS. Select the runway, procedure and transition from the database. Avoid manually entering every chart fix unless the aircraft cannot load the procedure; manual entries can omit coded turns, altitude constraints and path definitions.
- Compare the route with the chart. Check the fix sequence, tracks, altitude and speed restrictions, radio frequencies, final approach course and missed-approach instructions.
- Brief the critical details. Before departure or descent, identify minimum altitudes, approach minima, required navigation equipment, runway notes and the first missed-approach action.
- Keep the relevant chart available. During the procedure, monitor progress against the chart while flying the aircraft and following ATC instructions.
Lido-format symbols and page organisation can differ from other chart formats, so read the legend rather than assuming a familiar symbol has the same meaning. Our practical guide to reading aviation charts in a simulator explains chart structure, minima and procedure cross-checking in more depth.
Why do the chart, FMS and simulator disagree?
Disagreements usually come from different AIRAC cycles, an incorrect installation target, cached data or scenery whose runway layout predates the navigation database.
| Symptom | Likely cause | Corrective action |
|---|---|---|
| The FMS still shows the old cycle | Wrong target or path, separate aircraft database, or the simulator remained open during installation. | Close everything, reinstall to the aircraft's listed target, restart and check the FMS status page. |
| A charted procedure is missing from the FMS | The chart and FMS use different effective data, or the add-on cannot interpret that procedure type. | Align the cycles and confirm that the aircraft supports the procedure. Do not invent fixes from a chart to conceal a coding limitation. |
| The ILS frequency or runway position differs | Up-to-date data is being used with old default or add-on scenery. | Use an internally consistent procedure and scenery combination. Navdata can change coded records, but it cannot move the scenery's runway or localiser model. |
| The route contains discontinuities or rejected airways | The planner and aircraft use different waypoint or airway definitions. | Match their cycles, reload the route and inspect the legs around every discontinuity before removing it. |
| Navdata works but charts remain locked | The chart entitlement is separate, expired or signed into a different account. | Check the chart licence and account session; reinstalling the FMS database will not unlock charts. |
A mistake we see constantly is updating the base simulator while overlooking the add-on aircraft's private database. Always verify the cycle inside the cockpit; a successful installer message only confirms that files were written somewhere.
How should you handle an AIRAC cycle mismatch?
The safest approach is to align the planner, FMS and charts to the same effective cycle, while remembering that scenery may still represent an older airport layout.
If exact alignment is impossible, use a route and procedure available in the aircraft database, then compare every constraint and runway detail with the chart you intend to fly. For online operations or supplied flight plans, the expected cycle may dictate the route; for older scenery, a newer procedure may be unusable despite appearing correctly in the FMS.
Do you need NavDataPro for flight simulation?
NavDataPro is useful when your chosen simulator or aircraft explicitly supports it and you need maintained IFR data, Lido-format charts or consistent procedure coding across several compatible products.
- Choose it when you regularly fly current SIDs, STARs and approaches and can update every important planning and FMS target.
- Built-in data may be sufficient for casual flying, basic radio navigation or aircraft that do not support a NavDataPro target.
- For historical aircraft or scenery, newer data can make the simulated airport less accurate rather than more accurate.
- Before obtaining a package, confirm the supported simulator, aircraft, operating system, included cycles and whether charts require a separate entitlement.