Set up FlightGear GPS navigation, enter direct-to waypoints or routes, select the right NAV source, and fix common GPS and autopilot problems.
To use GPS navigation in FlightGear, choose an aircraft with a working GPS, power its avionics, enter or load a route, and activate it. Set the panel’s navigation source to GPS, then follow the CDI manually or select NAV mode on a compatible autopilot. Exact controls vary by aircraft.
Which FlightGear GPS method should I use?
Use Route Manager for the simplest simulator-wide route setup, or operate the panel GPS when you want realistic cockpit interaction. These systems often share route data, but aircraft with custom avionics may maintain an independent flight plan.
| Navigation method | Best used for | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Route Manager | Creating and activating a route quickly | May not synchronise with a custom aircraft GPS or FMS |
| Panel GPS | Direct-to navigation and realistic cockpit operation | Buttons, features and data entry differ between aircraft |
| Custom FMS | Airliners and aircraft-specific procedures | Usually follows its own documentation and may bypass Route Manager |
The moving map and the cockpit GPS are not the same instrument. If you need an overhead view of waypoints, navaids and the active route, our guide to FlightGear’s map and route display explains that separate system.
How do I set up a GPS route in FlightGear?
A basic GPS route consists of an ordered list of airports, navaids or fixes with one leg marked active.
- Load a GPS-equipped aircraft. Confirm that its GPS screen and controls are functional rather than decorative. Aircraft packages do not all implement the same avionics.
- Power the electrical system. Turn on the battery, alternator or generators as appropriate, followed by the avionics master. Check the GPS brightness control if the display remains black.
- Open Route Manager. Its menu location can vary with the FlightGear interface, but the tool is identified as Route Manager.
- Add the route in flying order. Enter the departure airport, intermediate fixes or radio navaids, and destination. Use the correct identifiers and verify the waypoint type and location where names are duplicated.
- Activate the route. Activation establishes the first usable leg. If the GPS points towards the wrong waypoint, select or activate the intended leg rather than rebuilding the whole route.
- Select GPS as the NAV source. Look for a source selector or annunciation labelled
GPS,NAV/GPS,CDIorVLOC/GPS. Leaving it on VOR or LOC is a common reason the CDI ignores the GPS route. - Follow the active leg. Fly towards the desired track while keeping the course deviation indication centred. The GPS should sequence to the next waypoint when you pass the active fix unless OBS or waypoint-suspension mode is enabled.
If you are hand-flying the course, settle any unwanted axis movement first. Our FlightGear control calibration steps cover joystick axes, dead zones and conflicting assignments.
How do I fly direct to a waypoint?
Use the GPS unit’s Direct-To function when you want a course from your present position to one airport, navaid or fix.
- Press Direct-To. On Garmin-style units this is normally marked by a
Dwith an arrow, but custom instruments may use a menu or touchscreen command. - Enter the identifier. Use the cursor and knobs, or keyboard input if that particular instrument supports it.
- Check the result. Confirm the waypoint name, type and coordinates so that a duplicate identifier does not send you to the wrong region.
- Confirm activation. Many units require
ENTonce to accept the waypoint and again to activate the direct course. - Verify the active leg. The GPS should show a bearing, distance and desired track from the aircraft to the selected waypoint.
Those controls describe the common Garmin-style workflow, not a universal FlightGear command sequence. A custom GPS may use different buttons or may support only a subset of the real unit’s functions.
Can FlightGear’s autopilot follow GPS?
A FlightGear autopilot can follow GPS only when the aircraft connects its GPS output to the navigation mode.
- Select GPS guidance on the aircraft’s NAV or CDI source selector.
- Approach the desired track using heading mode or manual control. Some autopilots will not capture a course reliably from a large intercept angle.
- Stabilise the aircraft and engage the autopilot using the normal aircraft-specific procedure.
- Select NAV mode and watch the mode annunciation. Heading mode continues to hold the selected heading; it does not follow the magenta route.
- Monitor the capture. The CDI should move towards the centre and the aircraft should turn onto the desired track. Disconnect or return to heading mode if it turns away from the route.
Some panel GPS units are display-only, and some custom aircraft require their own flight-management or autopilot procedure. If no GPS source can be selected, do not assume NAV mode will use Route Manager automatically.
Will GPS fly an approach or descend automatically?
GPS guidance should be treated as lateral en-route navigation unless the aircraft specifically models approach procedures and vertical guidance. Ordinary NAV mode follows the lateral course; altitude hold, vertical speed and descent management remain separate autopilot functions.
Do not select approach mode merely because the destination is an airport. Use it only when the modelled GPS, approach and autopilot are designed to work together.
Why is the FlightGear GPS not working?
Most FlightGear GPS failures come from missing electrical power, an inactive route, the wrong navigation source or aircraft-specific avionics that do not use Route Manager.
| Symptom | Likely cause and fix |
|---|---|
| GPS screen is black | Switch on the battery and avionics, then check display brightness and any GPS power control. |
| Route appears on the map but not the GPS | The aircraft may use an independent GPS or FMS. Enter the plan in that unit or use an aircraft whose GPS reads Route Manager. |
| CDI does not respond | Activate a route leg and change the navigation source from VLOC or NAV to GPS. |
| GPS will not accept a waypoint | Check the identifier and waypoint type. The installed navigation database may not contain the expected fix, especially in an aircraft with its own data. |
| Route will not sequence | OBS, suspend or manual-leg mode may be active. Cancel it or activate the next leg explicitly. |
| Autopilot holds the wrong direction | Confirm GPS is the selected source, then use NAV rather than HDG mode and intercept the active course at a sensible angle. |
| Aircraft circles near a waypoint | The autopilot may be chasing a missed course or repeatedly capturing the same leg. Select the next leg, regain a stable heading and re-engage NAV. |
The decisive checks are the GPS power state, active waypoint, selected CDI source and autopilot annunciation. If all four are correct but the aircraft still ignores the route, the limitation is probably in that aircraft’s avionics implementation rather than the route itself.