What is a flight briefing, and how do you prepare one for flight simulation?

A flight briefing is the pre-flight review that turns a planned simulator flight into a safe, workable operation. In flight simulation generally, it should cover the aircraft and loading, route, weather, fuel, departure and arrival procedures, likely threats, alternates, and clear decisions for delays, diversions or a missed approach.

Is a flight briefing the same as a flight plan?

A flight plan is one input to a flight briefing, not the complete briefing. The plan describes where and how you intend to fly; the briefing tests whether that plan works with the selected aircraft, weather, runway, fuel, scenery, navigation data and simulator settings.

The term can also mean three related things. A briefing package is the written paperwork, a pre-flight briefing is the pilot's review of the whole operation, and a take-off or approach brief is the short cockpit summary immediately before that phase. Our explanation of what a PFPX briefing package contains shows how route, fuel, weights, weather and navigation logs fit together.

A briefing does not replace a checklist. The checklist confirms that the aircraft is configured; the briefing explains what should happen next, which threats matter and what you will do if the plan stops working.

What should a flight simulation briefing include?

A useful briefing contains only information that could affect the flight or trigger a decision.

• Flight details: aircraft type and exact variant, callsign or flight number, departure, destination, alternate, planned time and weather mode.
• Aircraft and loading: payload, fuel, total mass, centre of gravity, equipment limitations and any simulated failures.
• Route: runway, SID or initial departure path, en-route fixes and airways, arrival, approach and expected routing changes.
• Airport information: runway lengths, elevations, taxi route, closures represented by the simulator, parking position and terrain or obstacle concerns.
• Weather: wind, visibility, cloud, pressure, temperature, turbulence, icing and convective hazards at departure, en route, destination and alternate.
• Fuel and performance: trip fuel, taxi allowance, contingency or reserve fuel, expected landing fuel and runway performance for the actual aircraft add-on.
• Threats and contingencies: low cloud, crosswind, short runway, terrain, unfamiliar procedures, diversion options, missed approach and minimum fuel decision points.

How do you prepare a flight briefing?

Prepare the briefing in operational order, moving from the intended flight to the final cockpit cross-check.

1. Define the flight. Select the precise aircraft variant, airports, departure time, weather source and realism settings. Do not combine a historical scenario with live weather or present-day runway assumptions unless that mismatch is intentional.
2. Build a provisional route. Choose a route appropriate to the aircraft, direction of flight, available navigation equipment and expected runways. For airline-style IFR planning, our step-by-step SimBrief planning workflow covers aircraft profiles, payload, fuel, alternates and route generation.
3. Collect the airport and procedure information. Obtain airport diagrams and the relevant departure, arrival and approach charts. Confirm frequencies, altitude restrictions, transitions, minima and missed-approach instructions using our practical chart-briefing guide.
4. Analyse the simulated weather. Check departure, destination and alternate conditions, then consider en-route winds, cloud, icing, turbulence and thunderstorms. A real weather report may not exactly match the simulator's weather engine, so make operational decisions from the conditions the aircraft will encounter.
5. Calculate loading, fuel and performance. Keep kilograms and pounds consistent, include a stated reserve policy and use data appropriate to the exact aircraft model. A dispatcher's profile for one engine or cabin configuration may give incorrect fuel, centre-of-gravity or runway figures for another.
6. Brief the departure and arrival. For departure, identify the runway, initial track, first altitude, significant restrictions, terrain and return plan. For arrival, cover the expected transition, approach type, minima, runway-exit plan and missed approach.
7. Set decision points. Decide what would make you delay, change runway, hold, divert or discontinue an approach. “Try it and see” is not a contingency plan; use measurable triggers such as fuel remaining, weather below your chosen minima or an unstable approach.
8. Enter and cross-check the route. Compare the FMS, GPS or simulator flight plan against the briefing. Inspect the first and last fixes, runway transitions, altitude constraints, route discontinuities and the displayed track rather than assuming an imported file is correct.
9. Update immediately before departure. Recheck weather, runway, fuel, payload and any ATC clearance. Amend the briefing when the actual clearance or simulated conditions differ from the original plan.

How detailed should a simulator briefing be?

The required depth depends on the flight's complexity, duration and consequences of getting the plan wrong.

A short VFR circuit does not need an airline dispatch package. Conversely, an oceanic or complex IFR sector cannot be briefed adequately with only a route line and estimated flight time. Aim for a written summary that can be scanned quickly, followed by a concise spoken or mental brief before take-off and approach.

What commonly makes a flight briefing unusable?

Most unusable briefings contain plenty of data but fail to reconcile it with the simulated flight.

• Weather-time mismatch: the plan uses forecast winds while the simulator loads a different time or weather preset. Confirm the simulator clock and weather source before accepting fuel or runway calculations.
• Navigation database mismatch: the planner includes a fix or procedure absent from the aircraft. Replace the route segment or choose a procedure available in the installed navigation cycle.
• Runway conflict: the briefing assumes one runway while simulator ATC assigns another. Rebrief the departure or arrival instead of connecting the new runway to the old procedure without checking it.
• Wrong units or aircraft variant: pounds entered as kilograms, or performance copied from a superficially similar model, can invalidate loading and fuel figures. Verify units at every transfer between tools.
• Real-world information treated as simulated fact: a real NOTAM may describe a closure that the scenery does not model, while an add-on may contain an obstruction absent from real paperwork. Prioritise the environment actually represented in the simulator while recording any deliberate differences.
• No decision criteria: listing poor weather is not enough. State the runway limit, approach condition, fuel state or other trigger that would change the plan.
• Information overload: copying every page of a planning package hides the items needed in the cockpit. Extract the runway, constraints, frequencies, minima, threats and contingency decisions into a short working brief.

Should you update the briefing during the flight?

Yes—treat the original briefing as a baseline and update it whenever the operational picture changes. Recalculate expected landing fuel, review revised weather, confirm the active runway and perform a fresh approach brief before descent.

Longer airline-style flights may divide this work between pilot and dispatcher; our guide to using a virtual dispatch workflow explains how route monitoring, weather changes, fuel and diversions are handled after departure. The finished briefing should always let you answer four practical questions: what is the plan, what can disrupt it, when will you change it, and what will you do next?