Learn why the FSX navigation log shows incorrect route information and fix stale plans, routing settings, navdata conflicts and bad estimates.
In FSX and FSX: Steam Edition, the navigation log shows incorrect route information when it is reading an old or differently generated flight plan, using unsuitable planner settings, or consulting navigation data that does not match your charts or add-on avionics. It records the planned route, so ATC vectors and in-flight changes may not appear.
What does the FSX navigation log actually read?
The navigation log is generated from the active FSX flight plan and the simulator’s own navigation and scenery databases. It is not a live record of your aircraft’s path, ATC instructions or the route programmed solely into a third-party FMS.
The stock database reflects the simulator’s release-era aviation data. FSX: Steam Edition retains the same basic planning architecture, so installing that edition does not make the supplied routes, navaids or procedures match modern charts.
Route generation also depends on whether you selected Direct-GPS, VOR-to-VOR, low-altitude airways or high-altitude airways. The airway and VOR options can produce large detours when the old database cannot construct the route you expected. Our explanation of how FSX’s planner builds routes and navigation logs covers those choices in more detail.
What causes incorrect route information?
The shape of the error usually identifies whether the problem is the loaded plan, its routing method or a database mismatch.
| What the log shows | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| A completely different departure, destination or waypoint sequence | An older saved .PLN file is still active | Load the intended plan and make it the active FSX flight plan |
| Unexpected doglegs or distant VORs | VOR-to-VOR or airway routing is constraining the route | Regenerate it with the appropriate route type; use Direct-GPS when a simple point-to-point route is intended |
| Obsolete waypoints, frequencies, runways or airport identifiers | FSX’s database differs from the chart or route source | Use compatible data throughout the planner, scenery and avionics |
| The default GPS and log agree, but an add-on FMS does not | The add-on uses a separate AIRAC database or its own flight plan | Export or synchronise the route if the add-on supports it; otherwise treat the two systems as separate |
| ATC vectors, a new runway or an approach are missing | The instruction was issued after the original plan was generated | Follow ATC or the avionics; the unchanged log is normal |
| Missing, substituted or zero-length legs | An imported plan contains points FSX cannot interpret, or the file is malformed | Rebuild the plan inside FSX rather than repeatedly reloading the damaged file |
A mistake we see constantly is updating an add-on FMS and assuming the built-in Flight Planner has received the same data. It has not unless the update explicitly supports both systems. Updating only one component can make the disagreement worse; our explanation of simulator navdata mismatches shows why this happens.
Replacement airport scenery can create another conflict. If an old and a revised airport facility are both active, FSX may encounter duplicate or inconsistent runways, navaids and frequencies depending on scenery priority.
How do I fix the FSX navigation log route?
- Choose the authoritative route. Decide whether you intend to fly the built-in FSX plan, the default GPS route or an add-on FMS route. They will not necessarily match.
- Rebuild the plan. Open Flight Planner and confirm the departure, destination, flight rules, routing method and cruising altitude before generating the route again.
- Inspect every leg. Look for an unsuitable airway, a distant VOR, an obsolete identifier or a waypoint inserted by an imported plan. Regenerate the route with a different method if the detour is caused by the planner’s constraints.
- Save and activate the new plan. Saving a file is not enough if another plan remains loaded. Accept the new plan into the flight, then check the loaded route in FSX’s default GPS.
- Synchronise add-on avionics separately. Load or import the same route into the add-on FMS using the method supported by that aircraft. Programming its FMS alone will not rewrite the FSX navigation log.
- Resolve database differences carefully. Back up the affected files and avoid combining unrelated partial updates. Follow our FSX-specific navdata update and troubleshooting steps if obsolete facilities are the problem.
- Test suspected scenery conflicts. Temporarily disable only the airport or navigation package you suspect, restart FSX so its scenery database is refreshed, and generate a new plan. If the route becomes correct, fix the duplicate package or its scenery priority.
Does the navigation log update after take-off?
The FSX navigation log does not reliably rewrite itself around every in-flight change. ATC vectors, a newly assigned approach, a GPS direct-to command or edits made only in an add-on FMS can change what you fly without changing the underlying FSX plan.
You can edit or reload the active plan when the log genuinely needs to match, but doing so during an IFR flight may also affect FSX ATC’s handling of that flight. Do not reload a plan merely to make the log reflect temporary radar vectors.
Not every numerical difference indicates a bad route. Small course variations can result from magnetic variation, rounded waypoint positions or different databases, while ETE and fuel figures are planning estimates based on assumed aircraft performance. A large course error, wrong airport or missing leg points instead to the loaded plan or navigation data.