NeoFly for MSFS 2020: what is it and how do I use it?
Learn what NeoFly adds to MSFS 2020, how to install and connect it, fly jobs, use add-on aircraft, and fix mission or SimConnect errors.
NeoFly is a Windows companion app that adds a career layer to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, including jobs, pilot progression, aircraft ownership and operating costs. Install it outside the Community folder, create a pilot, connect to a running PC copy of MSFS through SimConnect, then fly each assignment within its stated limits.
What does NeoFly add to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020?
NeoFly supplies the persistent career system that MSFS 2020 does not provide on its own. Depending on the release, career mode and optional modules, this may include cargo and passenger work, emergency or specialist missions, qualifications, reputation, aircraft purchases, maintenance, fuel costs and company management.
It is a companion application, not an aircraft, scenery package or official Microsoft expansion. NeoFly monitors simulator data such as position, aircraft, departure, landing and mission conditions, while MSFS continues to handle the world, weather, flight dynamics, navigation and aircraft controls.
The core career application has been available without charge, while optional paid features have also been offered. A feature shown in a video or screenshot may therefore depend on a different NeoFly release, career mode or module.
How do I install and use NeoFly with MSFS 2020?
The basic workflow is to install NeoFly as a separate Windows application, select a job, load the matching flight in MSFS 2020 and keep NeoFly running until it records completion.
- Install the Windows application: use the package supplied by the developer and retain a normal Windows application location unless you have a reason to change it. Do not install NeoFly in
Community; that folder is for simulator packages such as aircraft, liveries and scenery. - Create a pilot profile: choose the career options, starting airport and starter aircraft carefully. Check the airport's ICAO code rather than relying on its name, because similarly named airports can cause a failed departure.
- Select a suitable job: inspect the departure, destination, distance, payload, permitted aircraft or class and any special restrictions. For early assignments, favour short routes with comfortable runway, fuel and payload margins.
- Load the matching flight in MSFS: select the exact departure airport and aircraft expected by NeoFly. Start at a parking stand rather than on the runway or in the air, then plan the route and procedures in MSFS.
- Confirm the SimConnect connection: wait until the cockpit has fully loaded, return to NeoFly and use its connection or flight-start control. A standard PC installation normally provides the required SimConnect components; our SimConnect installation and troubleshooting guidance covers the exceptions. Do not move until NeoFly reports the simulator and aircraft as connected.
- Set fuel and payload: let NeoFly apply the dispatch values if your release offers that function; otherwise enter them in MSFS. Start the assignment only after checking the figures, and do not change aircraft, fuel or payload afterwards unless the job requires it.
- Fly and complete the job: avoid slew mode, teleportation, AI control and returning to the main menu. At the destination, taxi into the recognised airport area, stop at a suitable stand, apply the parking brake and shut down if instructed before using NeoFly's unloading or completion control.
Keep NeoFly open throughout the flight. Closing either application, restarting MSFS or loading another aircraft can break the assignment; a simulator crash usually ends it unless that NeoFly release provides a recovery function.
Can NeoFly use add-on aircraft, and why does it report the wrong one?
NeoFly can use many add-on aircraft when the aeroplane is installed correctly in MSFS and can be matched to an appropriate career entry. If a job requires a model you do not have, you can find compatible free aircraft for MSFS 2020 on PC, then load the add-on once in the simulator before configuring it in NeoFly.
Aircraft variants that look identical in the MSFS selector can expose different internal titles or ICAO data. Select the exact model and variant assigned to the job; liveries are usually less troublesome than separate variants, but heavily modified aircraft may need their own NeoFly entry.
Where aircraft-management or import controls are available, verify the model's class, payload, range and purchase data. Do not rename files or substitute an unrelated aeroplane merely to pass the selection check, as that can distort job eligibility and operating costs. If an add-on repeatedly fails to report its parking brake, engine or door state, repeat the workflow with a stock aircraft to isolate aircraft-specific telemetry.
Why won't NeoFly connect or complete a mission?
Most failures come from connecting before the cockpit has loaded, using the wrong aircraft or airport, or finishing outside the destination area expected by the mission.
| Symptom | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| NeoFly remains disconnected | MSFS is still at a menu, the applications have different Windows privilege levels, or security software is blocking access | Load fully into the cockpit, restart NeoFly and run both under the same user permissions. Allow the application on the private Windows network if prompted. |
| The connection drops in flight | The PC sleeps, either application restarts, or MSFS crashes | Disable sleep for the flight and keep both applications open. Use mission recovery only when the installed NeoFly release explicitly provides it. |
| No suitable jobs appear | Filters, rank, location, aircraft range or payload limits exclude the available work | Clear restrictive filters and search for shorter or lighter assignments from the pilot's present airport. |
| Departure is not detected | The wrong ICAO code was selected or the aircraft spawned outside the expected airport boundary | Return to the World Map and start at a parking position at the mission's exact departure airport. |
| The mission will not complete | The aircraft is moving, outside the destination area or has not met the required parked state | Taxi to a proper stand, stop completely, apply the parking brake and shut down the engines when instructed. Wait for NeoFly to register each state. |
Reinstalling NeoFly inside the Community folder will not repair a SimConnect fault and can leave an invalid package for MSFS to scan. Before updating, reinstalling or moving NeoFly to another PC, back up its pilot profile or local database; career finances, fleet records and completed jobs are stored by NeoFly rather than in the MSFS logbook.
Does NeoFly work with MSFS 2020 on Xbox?
NeoFly requires the Windows PC version of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and cannot run natively on an Xbox Series X|S console. Microsoft Store, Xbox app and Steam editions installed on a Windows PC can use companion applications, provided NeoFly can connect to the running simulator through SimConnect.