How do you use the Airbus A320 EFIS controls?
The Airbus A320 EFIS controls determine what each pilot sees on the Primary Flight Display and Navigation Display: barometric reference, flight-director and landing-system indications, Navigation Display mode and range, map overlays, and VOR/ADF bearing pointers. In a flight simulator, use them to configure the displays for each phase rather than to steer the aircraft directly.
In Aviation & Real-World Flying terminology, EFIS means Electronic Flight Instrument System. Each pilot has a separate EFIS control panel on the glareshield, so changing the captain’s settings should not necessarily change the first officer’s display. Our overview of how the main A320 controls and screens relate provides the broader cockpit context.
What does each A320 EFIS control do?
Each EFIS control changes a specific part of the associated PFD or ND presentation.
| Control | Function | How it is normally used |
|---|---|---|
| BARO selector | Sets the pressure reference shown on the PFD. | Rotate it to enter local QNH. On a faithfully modelled A320, pull for STD and push to return to the selected pressure. Select hPa or inHg as required. |
| FD | Shows or removes flight-director command bars on that pilot’s PFD. | Both flight directors are normally on for an automated or managed flight. The button does not engage the autopilot. |
| LS | Displays landing-system information and localiser/glideslope scales on the PFD. | Select it before a conventional ILS approach. It displays guidance information but does not arm the approach. |
| ND mode selector | Selects ILS, VOR, NAV, ARC or PLAN presentation. | Choose the mode that gives the clearest view for route checking, normal navigation or raw-data approach monitoring. |
| ND range selector | Changes the Navigation Display scale, commonly through 10, 20, 40, 80, 160 and 320 NM settings. | Use a short range near departure or approach, then increase it to see upcoming waypoints, constraints and the top of descent. |
| CSTR, WPT, VOR.D, NDB and ARPT | Add constraints, waypoints, VOR/DME stations, NDBs or airports to the map. | Select the information needed at that moment. In the real logic, choosing one option normally deselects the previous one. |
| VOR/ADF selectors | Display bearing pointers from tuned VOR or ADF receivers. | Select VOR or ADF for BRG1 and BRG2. No pointer appears without a valid tuned and received station. |
Which A320 Navigation Display mode should you use?
Use ARC for most normal flying, PLAN for checking the programmed route, and the rose modes when a full compass or raw navigation display is more useful.
| ND mode | Best use | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|
| ARC | Normal departure, climb, cruise, descent and approach monitoring. It gives a forward-looking sector with the route ahead. | Traffic or route information behind the aircraft is not shown. |
| ROSE NAV | A full 360-degree compass view of the aircraft and FMGS route. | Less forward range is visible at a given scale than in ARC. |
| ROSE ILS | Monitoring an ILS course and deviation with a full compass rose. | It does not tune the ILS or arm localiser and glideslope capture. |
| ROSE VOR | Monitoring or tracking a tuned VOR using raw radio-navigation data. | It is useful only when the correct VOR and course have been selected. |
| PLAN | Reviewing the route, turns, discontinuities and approach sequence before flight or during a quiet phase. | It is north-up and centred on a selected flight-plan waypoint, so it is a poor tactical display while hand-flying. |
In PLAN mode, step through the flight-plan waypoints from the MCDU to inspect the entire route. If no useful route appears, check the underlying MCDU flight-plan setup that supplies the ND.
How should you configure EFIS during a simulated flight?
A sensible simulator setup changes the EFIS presentation as the flight progresses rather than leaving one mode and range selected throughout.
- Power and initialise the displays. Ensure the aircraft has electrical power, the display brightness is raised and the inertial-reference system is aligned. A quick-start aircraft may have completed this automatically.
- Set the departure QNH. Enter the local pressure in the correct units and compare both PFD indications. Selecting inches of mercury when the reported value is in hectopascals is a common source of major altitude errors.
- Confirm both flight directors. For a normal managed flight, place FD1 and FD2 on. Remember that each pilot’s EFIS button controls the corresponding side.
- Inspect the route in PLAN. Step through the flight plan and look for unexpected turns, gaps and the correct departure. Return to ARC before taxi or take-off; the ND is not an airport taxiway map unless a particular add-on provides that separate feature.
- Use a close ARC range for departure. A 10 or 20 NM range often gives the clearest view of the first turns and constraints. Select
CSTRwhen altitude and speed restrictions matter, then increase the range as the route opens up. - Expand the range in climb and cruise. Choose a scale that shows the next significant waypoint, weather area or top of descent without reducing the route to a cramped line. A long range is useful for planning; a shorter range is better for precise monitoring.
- Prepare the approach presentation. Set local QNH when leaving standard pressure at the applicable transition level, reduce the ND range and select LS for a conventional ILS. The separate APP control must still be used to arm approach guidance when appropriate. Some A320 versions model FLS presentation for selected non-ILS approaches, while simplified simulator aircraft may not.
Airline procedures differ, so these are simulator display-management defaults rather than a substitute for an operator’s standard operating procedures.
Do EFIS controls fly the A320?
Most EFIS selections alter the presentation only; changing ND mode, range or overlay does not modify the programmed route or command the autopilot.
The FCU controls selected or managed speed, heading, vertical speed and altitude, while the MCDU supplies the route and performance data. See our explanation of the A320’s managed and selected FCU controls if the push-pull knob logic is causing confusion.
Three EFIS controls still have operational consequences. BARO changes the altitude reference, FD controls the displayed guidance commands, and LS exposes landing-system data. LS is not the same as APP, and the EFIS map-option buttons do not operate the weather radar or terrain display; those use separate controls where modelled.
Why is the A320 Navigation Display blank or missing data?
A blank or incomplete ND usually results from aircraft initialisation, tuning or simulator interaction rather than the selected map range alone.
| Symptom | Likely cause and fix |
|---|---|
Black display or MAP NOT AVAIL | Check electrical power, the display brightness controls and inertial-reference alignment. The screens may illuminate before valid heading and position data become available. |
| No route in ARC or PLAN | Confirm that a flight plan has been inserted and that the aircraft has a valid position. Step through the MCDU flight-plan page to find discontinuities or an incorrectly selected waypoint. |
| LS selected but no identifier or deviation diamonds | LS only reveals received data. Check the ILS frequency and course, receiver range and approach selection. Pressing LS does not tune or capture the approach by itself. |
| VOR or ADF pointer is absent | Select the correct bearing source and verify that a station is tuned and within reception range. Some simplified aircraft do not model every receiver function. |
| An overlay button lights but no symbols appear | Try a shorter range and a compatible map mode. There may be no matching database objects nearby, and selecting another overlay normally replaces the first. |
| A knob rotates but will not push or pull | Simulator aircraft use different mouse conventions and hotspots. Use the cockpit tooltip to identify push, pull and rotation areas; hardware bindings may require add-on-specific events. |
| The other pilot’s display does not change | This is normal in a fully modelled A320 because the two EFIS panels are independent. Simplified aircraft may instead mirror some or all settings. |
If a labelled EFIS switch never changes either display despite correct power and setup, the simulator aircraft may simply not implement that function.