Learn how to read an instrument approach chart in a flight simulator, including the plan view, profile, minima, missed approach and mismatch fixes.
To read an instrument approach chart in a flight simulator, first confirm the airport, runway and procedure, then follow the chart from plan view to profile, minima and missed approach. Identify the entry fix, courses, altitude restrictions, final approach fix, decision point and missed-approach instructions before loading or flying it.
The method is the same in general-purpose simulators such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, X-Plane, Prepar3D and FSX. Chart design varies by country and publisher, but every plate supplies the lateral route, vertical limits, landing minima and missed-approach procedure needed to complete the approach.
What does each part of an approach chart show?
An instrument approach chart is best read as a set of connected sections rather than as one complicated diagram.
| Chart section | What to check | Why it matters in the simulator |
|---|---|---|
| Title and header | Airport, runway, procedure name, chart revision and location identifier | Confirms that the plate matches the procedure selected in the avionics |
| Notes and briefing information | Required equipment, frequencies, restrictions, altimeter notes and temperature limits | A note may make the approach unsuitable for the aircraft or conditions |
| Plan view | IAFs, intermediate fixes, courses, distances, procedure turns and holding patterns | Shows the approach from above and how the aircraft joins final |
| Profile view | Crossing altitudes, descent path, FAF, step-down fixes and MAP | Shows when descent is permitted and how low the aircraft may go |
| Minima table | DA, MDA, visibility and aircraft category | Defines the lowest authorised simulated descent and the required visual conditions |
| Missed approach | Initial climb, heading or track, altitude and holding fix | Provides the route to fly if the runway is not acquired |
If chart types, scales and orientation are unfamiliar, our explanation of aeronautical chart symbols and conventions supplies the broader background. Jeppesen plates arrange some information differently; use our guide to Jeppesen symbols, restrictions and minima rather than assuming every publisher uses identical notation.
In what order should you read an approach plate?
Read the plate in briefing order: identity, restrictions, route, vertical profile, minima and missed approach.
- Confirm the exact procedure. Match the airport, runway and complete approach name. ILS Y and ILS Z, or RNAV X and RNAV Y, are separate procedures rather than interchangeable transitions.
- Read every operational note. Check required navigation equipment, frequency information, DME requirements, approach availability and any unusual altimeter or temperature restriction. Choose a procedure compatible with the aircraft; our comparison of instrument approach types and their guidance explains the practical differences.
- Find the route onto final. In the plan view, locate the selected initial approach fix, intermediate fix and final approach fix. Check whether the route requires a procedure turn, holding pattern or radar vectors. Do not fly a course reversal when the selected transition is marked NoPT.
- Trace every course and distance. Courses are normally magnetic unless the chart says otherwise. Confirm what each distance is measured from: DME may refer to a ground station, while an RNAV distance normally refers to a named waypoint. It is not automatically distance to the runway.
- Read the vertical profile from left to right. Note mandatory, minimum and maximum altitudes, step-down fixes, glidepath intercept altitude and the published descent angle. The chart legend determines how lines, bars and altitude markings must be interpreted.
- Locate the FAF and MAP. The final approach fix begins the final segment. On a non-precision procedure, the missed approach point may be a waypoint, station passage, distance or elapsed time; it is not necessarily the point where the aircraft reaches MDA.
- Select the correct minima. Use the row for the approach actually being flown and the column for the aircraft category. Check both altitude and visibility rather than reading only the largest number in the box.
- Brief the missed approach. Memorise or write down the first heading or track, initial altitude and holding fix. Configure the missed-approach altitude at the stage specified by the aircraft procedure so that the autopilot does not capture it prematurely.
- Cross-check the avionics. Compare every loaded fix, leg, course and altitude against the plate. A magenta line proves only that a route was loaded; it does not prove that the correct approach or transition was selected. Our practical procedure for loading, intercepting and flying an instrument approach covers the cockpit actions after the chart briefing.
How do you choose the correct approach minima?
Choose minima by matching the approach type, available guidance and aircraft approach category to the appropriate line and column.
- DA or DH: Commonly used for ILS and approaches with approved vertical guidance. If the required visual reference is absent at the decision point, begin the missed approach without levelling off.
- MDA: Commonly used for localiser-only, LNAV, VOR and NDB approaches. Do not descend below MDA, and do not continue beyond the published MAP without the required visual reference.
- Straight-in minima: Apply when landing on the specified runway from the published final approach.
- Circling minima: Apply when leaving the final approach course to manoeuvre visually for another runway. These normally have higher altitude and visibility requirements.
Use the aircraft's published approach category, based on its reference or threshold approach speed under the applicable charting rules. If the simulated approach is flown fast enough to place the aircraft in a higher category, use the higher minima where the procedure requires it. Also distinguish barometric minima from radio-altimeter minima when setting the cockpit alert.
Why does the chart not match the simulator?
Chart and simulator disagreements usually come from different navigation-data cycles, revised runway numbers, old scenery or the wrong procedure variant.
- Missing or renamed fixes: The plate and aircraft database probably use different data cycles. Load only a procedure whose fixes and leg sequence can be cross-checked against the chart.
- Different runway number: Magnetic variation can cause a real airport to renumber a runway before installed scenery is updated. Confirm the physical runway and localiser rather than relying on the painted number alone.
- Wrong route after the IAF: The wrong transition may be loaded, or the procedure may contain a vectors leg. Do not delete a discontinuity blindly; it may represent an expected heading or ATC vector before intercepting final.
- Small course discrepancy: Runway heading, localiser course and an older database value can differ slightly. Fly the published procedure and valid navigation signal rather than rotating the selected course merely to make it equal the runway label.
- No vertical guidance: Not every RNAV procedure supplies a glidepath, and an ILS will not capture correctly with the wrong frequency, navigation source, intercept geometry or autopilot mode. A descent angle printed on the chart does not guarantee that the avionics will command it.
Which chart-reading mistakes cause the most failed approaches?
The most common failures come from treating individual numbers or symbols without checking what they refer to.
- Descending to a profile altitude before the aircraft is established on the segment to which that altitude applies.
- Reading minimum safe altitude as a normal procedure altitude. It is principally emergency obstacle-clearance information and may not guarantee navigation-signal coverage.
- Confusing the final approach fix with the missed approach point.
- Assuming the plan view is drawn precisely to scale.
- Using an LNAV MDA while the avionics displays an advisory glidepath, then treating that advisory path as approved vertical guidance.
- Ignoring a step-down fix between the FAF and runway.
- Briefing the landing but not the missed approach, then turning towards the hold before reaching the specified fix or altitude.
A sound final check is simple: point to the entry fix, trace the lateral route, state each altitude, identify the decision point, read the applicable minima and then trace the complete missed approach. If any part cannot be explained from the plate, resolve it before starting the final segment.