How do you fly an Airbus A320 go-around in a simulator?

To perform an Airbus A320 go-around in a simulator, move both thrust levers to TOGA, follow the SRS flight-director command, retract flap one step, and confirm a positive climb before selecting gear up. Check the FMA for MAN TOGA, SRS and GA TRK/NAV, then accelerate and clean up at the briefed altitudes.

For our Aviation & Real-World Flying coverage, we use real Airbus mode logic as the reference. Exact call-outs, acceleration altitudes and automation behaviour vary by operator and add-on, so real crews must follow their operator’s procedures rather than a general simulator guide.

What is the correct A320 go-around sequence?

The correct sequence is TOGA, go-around guidance, one stage of flap retraction, positive climb, gear up, and then a controlled clean-up at the briefed altitude.

1. Make the decision. Call Go around, flaps as soon as the landing is no longer safe or stable. Do not delay the decision while trying to rescue a poor approach.
2. Select TOGA. Move both thrust levers fully into the TOGA detent. On a correctly modelled A320, reaching that detent triggers the go-around modes; merely applying high thrust may not. If the autopilot is already flying the approach correctly, it can normally remain engaged.
3. Follow SRS. Rotate smoothly and follow the flight-director pitch command. Avoid pulling to an arbitrary nose attitude: aircraft weight, configuration, wind and engine performance all affect the commanded pitch.
4. Retract flap by one setting. From FULL, select 3; from 3, select 2. The instruction does not mean selecting FLAPS 1 immediately.
5. Check the FMA. Confirm MAN TOGA, SRS and normally GA TRK, with NAV engaged or armed when an active missed-approach path is available. If those modes are absent, fly pitch, thrust and a safe track before troubleshooting.
6. Positive climb, gear up. Use the vertical-speed indication, altimeter trend and outside picture to confirm a real climb. Do not select the gear up merely because the nose is raised.
7. Confirm the missed-approach altitude and route. Check the FCU altitude against the chart or ATC clearance. Monitor whether NAV captures the programmed route; otherwise use selected heading or track to fly the required path.
8. Set CL at thrust-reduction altitude. When the aircraft prompts LVR CLB, move the levers from TOGA to the CL detent. This allows autothrust to govern thrust again in a normally functioning A320.
9. Accelerate and clean up. At the briefed acceleration altitude, allow the aircraft to accelerate and retract flap according to the PFD’s flap-retraction speed cues. Continue towards clean configuration and green-dot speed unless a constraint or procedure requires otherwise.

Thrust-reduction altitude and acceleration altitude are not necessarily the same. A procedure may delay acceleration for terrain or obstacle clearance, so do not clean up simply because the aircraft has passed an arbitrary height.

What should the A320 FMA show after TOGA?

The FMA should confirm that the aircraft has left approach guidance and entered go-around guidance.

GA TRK is not the published missed approach. It initially holds the aeroplane’s existing track; it does not invent turns, altitude constraints or a holding pattern. NAV needs a valid, continuous active route before it can fly those elements.

The FMA is the final authority on what the automation is doing, not what a button press was intended to do. Our guide to reading A320 PFD modes and speed cues explains the active and armed annunciations used during the manoeuvre.

When should you go around instead of landing?

Go around whenever the approach or landing is no longer stable, safe or permitted.

• Unstable approach: the aircraft is not on the required path, speed or configuration, or needs large corrections close to the ground. A useful simulator baseline is stability by 1,000 ft above aerodrome level in instrument conditions and 500 ft in visual conditions, although operator criteria differ.
• No required visual reference: the aircraft reaches the applicable decision point without sufficient runway or approach-light references to continue.
• Runway unavailable: traffic, an obstruction, loss of landing clearance or doubt about runway status makes landing unsafe.
• Poor flare or touchdown: a hard bounce, excessive float, severe misalignment or loss of directional control is developing.
• ATC instruction: comply promptly while maintaining control and monitoring the go-around modes.
• Aircraft or environmental warning: windshear, terrain warnings or a significant system problem may require an immediate escape manoeuvre rather than a routine missed approach.

For visual circuits and manual finals, our explanation of stabilised visual approaches and go-around decision points covers the warning signs that appear before the flare.

Is a windshear or terrain escape the same as a normal go-around?

A reactive windshear or terrain escape is not a normal go-around and must use the aircraft’s dedicated escape guidance.

Although TOGA may still be required, configuration is normally held until the warning or hazard has cleared. Retracting gear or flap on the ordinary go-around schedule can reduce performance at precisely the wrong moment. Engine failures also require the applicable engine-out procedure and may use a different acceleration strategy.

How do you fly the published missed approach?

Brief the missed approach before starting the approach, then monitor rather than assume that the FMGS will fly it.

Know the initial track, first altitude, turn direction, relevant speed restrictions and any holding fix. Once established in the climb, use NAV if the programmed route is valid; use selected heading or track and altitude if it is not. An ATC instruction replaces the charted routing where applicable.

A common mistake we see is concentrating on flap retraction while the aircraft remains in GA TRK and flies straight past the required turn. Our guide to briefing and flying a published IFR missed approach covers the chart and clearance work beyond the initial A320 handling sequence.

Can an A320 go around after touching down?

An A320 can initiate a go-around after touchdown if reverse thrust has not been selected and there is enough runway and aircraft control to do so.

Advance the levers to TOGA, follow the go-around guidance, confirm that ground spoilers retract, and wait for a genuine positive climb before selecting gear up. After a bounce, do not push the nose down aggressively to force another touchdown.

If reverse thrust has been selected, the normal Airbus principle is to complete the landing. Simulator aircraft vary in how faithfully they model touchdown, spoiler and go-around mode transitions, so a simplified model may require manual pitch and track control even after TOGA is selected.

Why does an A320 go-around fail in the simulator?

Most simulator go-around failures come from a missed TOGA detent, absent FMGS routing, excessive pitch or premature configuration changes.

TOGA thrust appears, but SRS does not

The throttle axis probably failed to reach the modelled TOGA detent, or the add-on did not recognise the go-around condition.

Check the virtual lever position and the FMA rather than relying on the physical throttle alone. Recalibrate the throttle detents or remove conflicting throttle assignments if the lever jumps between CL, MCT and TOGA. Maintain safe manual pitch and thrust while diagnosing the automation.

The aircraft stays in GA TRK and misses the turn

NAV has no valid active route to capture, so the aircraft continues along the track held when TOGA was selected.

Use selected heading or track to fly the charted or assigned direction. Typical causes include a flight-plan discontinuity, an incorrectly loaded approach, a missing missed-approach leg or NAV never being armed.

The speed decays after the nose rises

Excessive pitch, early flap retraction or failure to apply full go-around thrust usually causes the speed loss.

Keep the levers in TOGA until the proper thrust-reduction point, follow SRS rather than pulling above it, and retain the initial flap setting until acceleration begins. If speed continues towards an unsafe value, reduce pitch while maintaining obstacle clearance.

The aircraft accelerates too quickly

Leaving the levers at TOGA after thrust-reduction altitude or lowering the nose too early can produce rapid acceleration and an untidy clean-up.

Move the levers to CL when prompted and retract flap on the correct speed schedule. Do not chase every speed change with abrupt pitch inputs; allow the flight director and autothrust to settle.

The autopilot disconnects or will not re-engage

Fly the go-around manually until the aircraft is stable rather than repeatedly pressing the autopilot button near the ground.

Centre the sidestick, establish valid flight-director modes, confirm that no failure or control conflict is active, and then attempt re-engagement when safe. The detailed autopilot engagement checks for Microsoft Flight Simulator cover controller noise, mode conflicts and other common simulator causes.