Why does my flight simulator throttle creep back?

In a general flight simulator, a throttle creeps back because the physical lever slips, the raw axis drifts, another device overrides it, or autothrottle or assistance is commanding less power. Watch the hardware, input meter and cockpit lever separately, then remove duplicate bindings, calibrate the axis and add the smallest effective dead zone.

Is the throttle hardware or the simulator causing it?

The point at which movement first appears identifies the likely cause. A raw axis is the controller’s reported position before aircraft systems such as autothrottle interpret it.

On a Windows PC, run joy.cpl, open the controller’s properties and watch the relevant axis without touching the lever. Drift there means the problem originates in the hardware, its calibration or the USB connection. If it is steady there but moves inside the simulator, investigate bindings, profiles, assistance and aircraft systems instead.

On consoles, use the simulator’s input or sensitivity display and disconnect other controllers one at a time. Our clean USB throttle profile and hardware test explains the same isolation process in more detail.

What should I do now to stop the throttle moving?

Isolate one possible cause at a time rather than changing sensitivity, calibration and aircraft settings together. If your immediate question is Was soll ich jetzt tun?—what should I do now—begin with the first step and stop when the unwanted movement disappears.

1. Load a simple test aircraft. Park a basic aircraft that has no autothrottle, set the parking brake and watch its cockpit throttle. This separates controller behaviour from complex aircraft logic.
2. Turn off automatic power control. Disconnect autothrottle or autothrust and disable assisted throttle, AI piloting, automatic take-off and copilot assistance. Moving a physical lever does not necessarily disconnect an active automatic system.
3. Inspect every connected device. Search the assignments on the throttle, joystick, yoke, pedals, gamepad, keyboard and virtual controllers. A forgotten gamepad axis or held throttle-decrease command can override the main lever; use our method for finding and clearing conflicting control assignments.
4. Keep one analogue throttle assignment. Do not bind an all-engines axis at the same time as separate engine-one and engine-two axes unless the hardware genuinely has independent levers. Remove overlapping digital increase and decrease commands during testing.
5. Calibrate the complete travel. If the device supports calibration, move it smoothly from idle to maximum and confirm that both endpoints are reached. Logitech and Saitek owners can follow our device-specific raw-axis and calibration checks.
6. Use the correct dead-zone control. Add only enough dead zone to stop visible noise. A large dead zone shortens usable travel and can make the cockpit lever jump when the input finally leaves it.
7. Check the connection. Try a direct USB port, temporarily remove an unpowered hub and disconnect unnecessary controllers. If the operating-system axis still drifts, changing simulator settings will not cure it.
8. Save a clean profile. Give the tested device profile a distinct name, then check it in a second aircraft. This prevents an imported preset or aircraft-specific profile from silently restoring the conflict.

Why does idle drift remain after calibration?

Idle drift usually needs endpoint correction rather than a large central dead zone. Many throttle levers have no centre position, so a conventional centre dead zone may affect the wrong part of the travel.

If the simulator provides minimum-endpoint, extremity-dead-zone or aircraft idle-calibration controls, use the smallest adjustment that makes idle stable while still allowing full travel. A raw signal that wanders across a wide range or deteriorates over time points to a worn or contaminated sensor, not a sensitivity-curve problem.

How do I turn off throttle detent behaviour in MSFS 2024?

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 has no single switch that removes every throttle detent because the effect may come from the physical controller, its control profile or the individual aircraft. Identify that layer before disabling or recalibrating anything.

1. Watch the selected device’s axis display. If it pauses or jumps at the same physical point before aircraft logic is involved, inspect the controller profile or hardware.
2. Check the axis options. With the correct device selected, inspect its throttle-axis binding and any detent or snapping option the profile offers. Disable virtual detent behaviour if you want a continuous axis.
3. Inspect the aircraft configuration. Detailed aircraft may define idle, climb, maximum-continuous and take-off ranges in an electronic flight bag or cockpit configuration panel. Select a no-detent hardware mode if the aircraft supports one; otherwise recalibrate the ranges for your lever.
4. Remove overlapping axes. Do not combine an all-engine throttle axis with engine-specific axes. This is a common cause of an MSFS 2024 throttle jumping between two positions.
5. Check assistance and autothrottle. A cockpit lever that moves while the raw axis remains steady is being commanded elsewhere; it is not a detent fault.

A physical notch cannot be switched off in software. Modify or remove it only when the controller manufacturer provides an intended adjustment method.

If the raw axis moves smoothly but the cockpit lever jumps as it crosses a named detent, recalibrate the aircraft’s ranges so adjacent zones do not overlap. Do not mask the problem with a huge dead zone. Airbus-style autothrust also relies on correctly recognised lever detents, so removing them may be less useful than calibrating them properly.

Why does it happen in only one aircraft?

A throttle problem confined to one aircraft normally comes from that aircraft’s automation, detent calibration or custom control code. Leave the global hardware calibration alone if the same profile works correctly in a simple general-aviation aircraft.

A mistake we see often is recalibrating the entire controller to compensate for one add-on aircraft. That can fix its idle point while breaking every other aircraft’s maximum power, reverse range or engine synchronisation.

Why does the throttle creep back only with autopilot on?

Autopilot and autothrottle are separate systems, and it is normally autothrottle or autothrust that changes engine power. Conventional autopilot operation alone should not move the throttle.

Boeing-style autothrottle commonly animates the cockpit levers as it maintains a selected speed or thrust. Airbus-style autothrust generally controls thrust while the levers remain in their selected detent. Assistance systems may also alter power without behaving exactly like the real aircraft’s automatic system.

Disconnect the automatic throttle through the aircraft’s normal control and confirm that it is no longer armed or active. Before moving your hardware, bring it close to the displayed or commanded power position; otherwise the virtual lever may jump when the simulator receives the first new axis value. Our guide to recognising and disconnecting autopilot modes helps separate vertical guidance from automatic throttle control.

Why does my plane keep going up in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

A throttle creeping towards idle is unlikely to cause a sustained climb; a throttle creeping forwards can increase speed and make a trimmed aircraft pitch up or climb. If the cockpit throttle and engine power remain steady, investigate pitch trim, the elevator axis, assistance and autopilot vertical modes instead.

• If the cockpit throttle moves forwards and engine power rises, correct the throttle input or automation fault.
• If the trim wheel moves by itself, check autopilot operation and duplicate pitch-trim bindings.
• If the control-input display shows aft elevator with the joystick released, calibrate the pitch axis and add a small centre dead zone.
• If an altitude, vertical-speed or flight-level-change mode is active, the climb may be commanded rather than caused by drift.
• If a manually trimmed propeller aircraft climbs after power is increased, that can be normal; stabilise the speed and retrim it.

What if the physical throttle lever slides back?

A standard non-motorised USB throttle cannot be pulled backwards by the simulator. If the real lever moves, the cause is mechanical: insufficient friction, gravity, cable tension or a worn mechanism.

• Increase the built-in tension or friction adjustment if the unit provides one.
• Mount the quadrant level and stop its USB cable pulling on the housing.
• Check that clamps and mounting screws are secure without overtightening plastic parts.
• Do not spray lubricant or cleaner into the mechanism unless the approved device instructions specifically call for it.
• If the lever still cannot hold position, repair or replace the worn part rather than trying to conceal physical movement with software calibration.

Does this apply to my simulator?

The same three-layer test—physical control, raw axis and simulated cockpit control—works in most flight and RC simulators, although the available calibration tools differ.

• Modern flight simulators: Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and 2020, X-Plane and Prepar3D can have per-device profiles, assistance settings and aircraft-specific control logic.
• FSX and FS95-era software: Windows joystick calibration and basic sensitivity or null-zone controls carry more of the work. FS95 may not provide the response curves, per-aircraft profiles or detailed dead-zone options found in newer simulators.
• RC simulators: Check the transmitter channel monitor, channel reversing, mixing and stick mode. A spring-centred gamepad axis assigned to throttle will naturally return towards its centre value.

The search phrase Absolute RC Simulator full usually concerns the software edition or licence rather than throttle drift; this article neither supplies nor verifies a full copy. If that simulator’s throttle channel creeps, the raw-channel and duplicate-assignment tests above still apply.

Likewise, es el V2 cannot be answered from throttle behaviour alone. Drift does not identify whether hardware, an aircraft or simulator software is version 2; check the exact product label or its version information before following revision-specific instructions.