How do I create and load a SimBrief plan into an FMC?

To create and load a SimBrief flight plan in MSFS, X-Plane, Prepar3D or another general flight simulator, build and generate the OFP, then use the aircraft’s direct SimBrief request, company-route file or manual entry. Verify the navigation-data cycle, procedures, route discontinuities, fuel and performance before departure.

Create the flight plan in SimBrief

A usable SimBrief plan begins with the correct airports and aircraft profile, but it is not available to the FMC until you generate the operational flight plan. Our full SimBrief dispatch-planning walkthrough covers the planning fields in greater depth.

1. Enter the flight details. Add the departure and destination ICAO codes, with an alternate where appropriate. Flight number, departure time and callsign may also be used by supported aircraft integrations.
2. Select the correct aircraft. Choose a profile matching the aircraft type and, where available, the specific add-on or saved airframe. The profile affects weights, fuel burn, cruise performance and the resulting operational flight plan.
3. Review the proposed route. Check the airways, waypoints, cruise level and any route warnings. A route may be valid in one navigation-data cycle but contain an unknown waypoint or airway in another.
4. Set payload and dispatch values. Confirm passengers or payload, reserves, cruise altitude and cost index. SimBrief calculates block fuel from these inputs, but the aircraft may still require fuel and payload to be loaded separately.
5. Generate the OFP. This is essential: most integrations retrieve the last generated operational flight plan, not unsaved changes on the planning page. Generate it again after changing the route, aircraft or fuel figures.

Which SimBrief import method should I use?

Use direct integration when the aircraft supports it; otherwise use an add-on-specific company-route file on PC or enter the route manually.

Loading a simulator-level flight-plan file is not necessarily the same as loading the aircraft’s FMC. Complex add-on aircraft often maintain their own route database and may ignore a plan loaded through the simulator’s world map. MSFS users can compare the available options in our MSFS 2020 and 2024 SimBrief workflow.

How do I load the SimBrief route into the FMC?

The exact keys differ between Airbus, Boeing and other FMS designs, but the route must be imported, activated and checked before it can guide the aircraft.

1. Power and initialise the avionics. Complete the aircraft’s normal electrical and position-initialisation steps. Check the navigation-data cycle shown by the FMC against the cycle used to generate the route.
2. Configure the SimBrief identity. If the aircraft supports direct integration, enter the requested SimBrief username or numeric Pilot ID in its EFB or avionics settings. These fields are not interchangeable in every add-on.
3. Open the route or flight-plan page. Enter the origin and destination first if the integration requires them. Airbus systems commonly use an INIT or flight-plan request function; Boeing-style units may use a route request or CO ROUTE field.
4. Retrieve or load the route. Request the generated plan directly, or enter the name of the exported company route. For file imports, use the exact export format and folder specified by the aircraft developer; one add-on’s route file is not automatically compatible with another.
5. Select departure and arrival procedures. Confirm the runway, SID, STAR, transition and approach using the weather and ATC clearance. Do not assume the procedures proposed during planning are still appropriate.
6. Activate and inspect the route. Execute or insert the temporary plan, then examine every leg for discontinuities, duplicate fixes, sharp turns and implausible altitude constraints. Do not automatically remove a discontinuity associated with an expected radar-vector segment.
7. Complete performance setup. Enter or verify reserves, cost index, cruise altitude, winds, take-off data, thrust settings and V-speeds. Importing the lateral route does not make the FMC ready for departure.

For the different page names and activation logic, see our Airbus and Boeing FMC loading sequence.

Why will the SimBrief flight plan not load?

Most failed imports are caused by an ungenerated OFP, an incorrect account identifier, mismatched navigation data or the wrong file format.

• No route appears: generate the OFP again, then repeat the request. Editing a plan without regenerating it leaves the previous OFP available to the aircraft.
• Authentication or user error: check whether the add-on requests a username, account name or numeric Pilot ID. Remove accidental spaces and confirm the identifier in both the EFB and FMC settings.
• NOT IN DATABASE or rejected waypoint: compare the SimBrief and aircraft navigation-data cycles. Replace obsolete fixes or build a route valid for the aircraft’s installed data.
• Company route not found: confirm the aircraft-specific export format, file name and folder. A downloaded archive must be extracted if the add-on expects the route file itself.
• Partial route only: some integrations import the en-route section but leave runways, SIDs and STARs for manual selection. This is often intentional rather than a failed import.
• Console installation: consoles do not provide normal access to an add-on’s route folders. Use an aircraft’s direct integration or enter the route through its avionics where supported.

What SimBrief data transfers to the FMC?

The route usually transfers, but fuel, payload, winds and performance data depend on the aircraft integration and may require separate requests.

Finally, an imported route does not automatically make the autopilot follow it. The plan must be inserted or executed, the active leg must be sensible, and the correct lateral navigation mode must be armed or engaged.