What is the landing checklist for MSFS 2024?

For Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, use this generic landing flow: brief the runway and weather, set the approach and altimeter, calculate landing speed, extend flaps in stages, lower and confirm the gear, complete the aircraft checklist, stabilise by 1,000 feet AGL, then land or go around. The aircraft’s own checklist always takes priority.

A landing checklist confirms that the aircraft is correctly configured; it does not teach the flare or crosswind technique. Our complete approach, touchdown and rollout walkthrough covers those handling details.

MSFS 2024 landing checklist

Use the following as a general flow when an aircraft does not provide a complete checklist. In some cockpits, these items are divided between Descent, Approach, Before Landing and Landing checklists.

Before descent

1. Check weather and runway: Obtain the wind, visibility, cloud, pressure and runway condition. Confirm that the selected runway has suitable length and surface for the aircraft.
2. Brief the approach: Review the runway, approach type, navigation source, minimums, missed-approach procedure and expected runway exit. If using an instrument approach, verify that the correct procedure and transition are loaded.
3. Set navigation: Tune or confirm the required navigation aids, course and CDI source. Loading an approach into the flight plan does not guarantee that the avionics are displaying the intended guidance.
4. Set the altimeter: Enter the reported local pressure and cross-check all available altimeters.
5. Calculate landing data: Obtain the recommended approach speed, VREF or VAPP from the aircraft’s documentation, EFB or avionics. Do not copy a speed from another aircraft, even if it looks similar.
6. Prepare aircraft systems: Set fuel selectors, pumps, mixture, propeller, anti-ice, pressurisation and other systems only as that aircraft’s checklist requires.

Approach and before landing

1. Reduce speed: Establish a controlled descent and slow before extending each flap stage. Keep below the flap-extension limit shown on the placard, airspeed indicator or speed tape.
2. Extend landing gear: Select the gear down at the appropriate point and verify the down-and-locked indication. Do not rely solely on hearing the gear move. If the lever or command is not behaving correctly, use our guide to gear controls, indications and binding problems.
3. Set landing configuration: Select the planned landing flap, trim the aircraft and maintain the calculated target speed. Jets may also require the speedbrakes armed and an autobrake setting selected.
4. Confirm the approach mode: Verify the correct lateral and vertical guidance. Do not assume that pressing an approach button guarantees capture.
5. Complete the aircraft checklist: Check gear, flaps, speed, lights and required systems against the cockpit checklist, EFB or aircraft manual.

Final approach

1. Check stability: The aircraft should be on the intended lateral and vertical path, fully configured, trimmed, near target speed and using a manageable descent rate.
2. Use a stability gate: A widely used minimum is 1,000 ft AGL in instrument conditions and 500 ft AGL in visual conditions. Using 1,000 ft for every approach is a sensible conservative target; aircraft or operator criteria take priority.
3. Verify runway and clearance: Confirm that the runway markings match the planned runway and, when using ATC, that landing clearance has been received.
4. Check automation: Disconnect the autopilot before its minimum use height when hand-flying. Leave it engaged for autoland only when the simulated aircraft supports autoland and the complete procedure has been configured correctly.
5. Make the decision: Continue only if the approach remains stable and the runway is clear. Otherwise, go around.

Touchdown and runway exit

1. Land in the touchdown zone: Maintain centreline, reduce power as the aircraft requires and use the correct flare technique. Avoid forcing the nose down or chasing an unrealistically soft touchdown.
2. Lower the nosewheel: After main-wheel touchdown, lower the nose under control while keeping straight with rudder or nosewheel steering as appropriate.
3. Decelerate: Confirm expected spoiler deployment, use reverse thrust where permitted and apply braking as required. Reverse thrust is not a substitute for sufficient runway or correct approach speed.
4. Vacate safely: Leave the runway before looking down to reconfigure the cockpit. Do not reach for the flap lever beside the gear lever while rolling unless the aircraft’s procedure explicitly calls for it.
5. Complete after-landing checks: Retract flaps, disarm spoilers, stow reverse thrust and set lights, anti-ice, transponder and trim as required by the aircraft.

Does the landing checklist change by aircraft?

Yes. The sequence is broadly similar, but speeds, flap settings, system checks and automation differ substantially.

• Fixed-gear trainers: There is no gear lever to lower, but speed, flap limits, mixture, fuel and carburettor-heat requirements still matter.
• Retractable piston aircraft: GUMPS is a useful memory aid: Gas, Undercarriage, Mixture, Propeller and Switches or Seatbelts. Mixture full rich and propeller full fine are not universal settings; follow the aircraft procedure.
• Turboprops: Check landing torque, propeller or condition levers and the permitted use of beta or reverse. Never move the power levers into a ground-only range during flight.
• Airliners: Use calculated VREF or VAPP, the selected landing flap, gear confirmation, speedbrake arming and the planned autobrake setting. Airbus pilots should use the A320-specific approach and landing configuration rather than treating this generic list as an Airbus procedure.

Some MSFS 2024 aircraft provide interactive checklist ticks based on detected switch positions. A tick does not confirm runway performance, target speed, navigation setup or approach stability, so those items still need a manual check.

When should I go around?

Go around whenever the landing cannot be completed from a stable, correctly configured approach without trying to rescue it near the runway.

• The aircraft is too fast, too high or not aligned at the stability gate.
• The landing gear is not confirmed down and locked.
• The runway is occupied, obstructed or cannot be positively identified.
• The aircraft floats beyond the intended touchdown zone.
• A severe bounce, warning or control problem makes the remaining landing unsafe.

Apply the aircraft’s published go-around procedure; do not retract all flap at once. For repetition without flying a complete route each time, use a short-final landing practice setup.

Why do the gear or flaps move automatically?

Assistance features, AI copilot functions or duplicated control assignments can operate the landing configuration without the pilot’s intended input.

Check the simulator’s piloting and checklist assistance options, then inspect every connected keyboard, gamepad, throttle and flight-control profile for duplicate gear or flap bindings. If a control moves and immediately returns, a conflicting assignment is more likely than an aircraft-system failure.