FS2004 (FS9) Flight Planning & FMC Questions & Answers

FS2004 flight planning spans several systems that do not always share the same data. These answers cover building IFR and VFR routes in the default planner, saving and loading PLN files, activating a route, and following it with the GPS or autopilot. They also clarify when an add-on aircraft's FMC needs a separate route format or navigation database.

Practical fixes address downloaded plans placed in the wrong folder, add-on airports absent from FS9's database, displaced runways and route discontinuities. A separate strand explains AI traffic plans: aircraft and airport identifiers, timetable syntax, repeat periods, validation and compilation into traffic BGL files. The Fly Away team writes and tests the procedures while noting where third-party utilities or scenery documentation are required.