Find why ATC is silent or unresponsive in a flight simulator, with fixes for radio power, COM frequencies, audio, flight plans and add-ons.
ATC usually stops working because the aircraft radios are unpowered, COM1 is tuned incorrectly, the wrong radio is selected for transmit, ATC audio is muted, or the airport has no tower service. A missing flight plan, assistance setting, add-on conflict or disconnected online-ATC client can also remove responses.
What kind of ATC failure are you seeing?
Across Microsoft Flight Simulator, FSX, Prepar3D and X-Plane, the symptom usually identifies which part of the ATC chain has failed.
| Symptom | Likely cause | Check first |
|---|---|---|
| No ATC menu or window | Hidden panel, incorrect shortcut or keyboard focus | Open ATC from the simulator interface rather than relying on a key binding |
| ATC menu opens but has no useful options | No service at that airport, wrong frequency or missing flight plan | Airport facilities, active COM1 frequency and filed route |
| ATC text appears but voices are silent | Voice volume, output device or online voice service | Communications audio and operating-system mixer |
| You hear ATC but cannot reply | Wrong transmit radio, no menu response selected or failed push-to-talk binding | COM transmit selector and control assignment |
| No IFR clearance option | The simulator has not loaded an IFR flight plan | Flight-plan type, departure airport and route import |
| Only ATIS is silent | Wrong frequency, unavailable station or separate audio issue | Published ATIS frequency and receive radio |
How do you get flight simulator ATC working again?
Work through the radio chain in order; changing unrelated graphics or aircraft settings rarely fixes ATC.
- Confirm that ATC service exists. Not every airport has a tower, ground controller, clearance delivery or ATIS. At an uncontrolled airfield, the absence of a tower response is normal rather than a fault.
- Power the avionics. In a cold-and-dark aircraft, switch on the battery, required electrical source and avionics master. Confirm that the COM radio and audio panel are operating; a lit cockpit does not guarantee that the radio bus is powered.
- Check the active COM frequency. Tune the required frequency into COM1 and swap it from standby to active. A mistake we see constantly is entering the correct number but leaving it in the standby window.
- Select the correct transmit radio. On aircraft with an audio panel, choose COM1 or the radio containing the controller's frequency for transmission. Make sure its receive channel is also enabled.
- Use the simulator's ATC interface. Most built-in ATC systems expect you to select a numbered or on-screen response; they do not interpret ordinary microphone speech. Reopen the panel directly if its keyboard shortcut has stopped responding or another window has captured focus.
- Load the flight plan inside the simulator. An external route or cockpit-entered route may not automatically become the plan used by built-in ATC. File or import the correct VFR or IFR plan, then confirm the departure airport before requesting clearance.
- Inspect communications audio. Check ATC voice volume, mute controls, the selected communications output device and the operating-system volume mixer. If ATC text continues to appear, the controller logic is working and the fault is almost certainly voice generation or audio routing.
- Disable automatic radio assistance. An AI co-pilot or assisted communications option may answer ATC, change frequencies or remove responses before you can select them. Turn that assistance off while testing.
- Test without add-ons. Temporarily disable ATC utilities, toolbar extensions, complex aircraft and replacement airport scenery. Test a default aircraft at a known towered airport, adding extensions back one category at a time.
For Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 or 2024, use our MSFS-specific checks for silent or unavailable ATC. FSX has different ATC-window, keyboard-focus and audio failure modes, covered in our FSX ATC repair sequence.
Why can I hear ATC but not transmit?
With built-in ATC, hearing the controller but being unable to answer usually means the response menu or COM transmit selector is wrong, not that the microphone has failed. Select the displayed response and verify that the active controller frequency is on the radio chosen for transmission.
Online human ATC is different. Its separate client must be connected with the correct callsign, input device and output device, while push-to-talk must be assigned to a control that is not duplicated elsewhere. Check microphone permission and input level if the transmit indicator activates but controllers cannot hear you.
Why are there no ATC options at the airport?
ATC choices only appear when the airport, frequency and phase of flight support the requested service. A non-towered airport will not provide tower or ground options, while IFR clearance normally requires a recognised IFR plan.
ATIS is an automated information broadcast rather than a controller, so it will never answer a transmission. If the problem affects only that broadcast, follow the separate checks for missing ATIS audio and frequencies.
Does flight simulator ATC need an internet connection?
Built-in ATC logic can often operate offline, but voice generation, live data and online human-controller networks may require a connection. If text responses work while speech disappears offline, select a locally installed voice option where the simulator provides one.
External online ATC always requires its client to remain connected. A simulator can still show the correct radio frequency after that client disconnects, which makes the failure look like a radio problem even though no controller audio can pass.