How do I record and replay flights in Microsoft Flight Simulator and other simulators?

To record and replay a flight, use the simulator’s Replay, Track or Flight Recorder function: start it before the manoeuvre, stop and save the track, then reopen it on the replay timeline. Replay data is not a video file; use screen capture if you want a clip anyone can watch without the simulator.

Replay, video or telemetry: which recording do you need?

Choose a simulator replay when you want to change cameras or inspect a landing; choose screen capture when you need a finished video.

A saved flight is not normally a replay. It restores the aircraft at a saved position and state but does not necessarily retain the path flown, control inputs or timing of events. A saved flight plan contains a route, not a recording.

If the final result must be an ordinary video file, follow our guidance on recording flight-simulator gameplay as shareable video. Keep the simulator replay as an editable source if you want to film several camera angles later.

How do you record and replay a complete flight?

The safest method is to test the recorder before departure, save explicitly and divide long flights into shorter recordings where the software permits it.

1. Locate the correct recorder. Look for Replay, Instant Replay, Track, Flight Video or Recorder. It may be in the normal interface, a developer toolbar or a separate add-on.
2. Make a short test track. Record a few control movements, stop and play them back. Confirm that the aircraft follows the correct path and that the gear, flaps, control surfaces, cockpit displays and sound behave acceptably.
3. Prepare the flight. Load the aircraft, livery, scenery and weather you intend to use. Live weather, online traffic and external services may not reproduce the same events during playback.
4. Start before the important segment. For a landing, begin recording before the approach rather than after touchdown. With an instant-replay buffer, do not continue flying for so long that the landing is overwritten.
5. Stop and save the track. Use a recognisable name and verify that the recording appears in the replay list or expected save location. The mistake we see most often is leaving the flight before saving.
6. Load replay mode. Scrub along the timeline, select a cockpit, tower or external camera, and play the recording once before capturing the final video.

For a long-haul flight, separate departure, cruise and arrival tracks are usually easier to manage than one continuous recording. Short tracks seek faster and are less likely to diverge after pauses, time acceleration or simulator updates.

How do you replay a landing in MSFS 2024 or MSFS 2020?

On PC, use the normal Replay command if your MSFS build presents one; otherwise use the replay recorder exposed through Developer Mode.

1. Load the flight first. Select the correct aircraft, livery, airport and weather, then position the aircraft before the approach.
2. Open the replay tool. If no normal replay control is visible, enable Developer Mode in the simulator’s developer settings and open Replay from the developer toolbar’s tools menu. Labels can vary between simulator updates.
3. Start recording before final approach. Confirm that the timer or replay timeline is advancing. Do not assume opening the recorder window automatically starts it.
4. Stop after clearing the runway. Save the recording before returning to the main menu or changing aircraft.
5. Play back and select a camera. Move to the required point on the timeline, then use cockpit, external, drone or airport cameras as available. Capture the screen during playback if you need a normal video.

Our detailed MSFS replay instructions for PC and consoles cover the controls and platform restrictions in more depth.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 is available on PC and Xbox and was never released for PlayStation. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is available on PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PS5 Pro. PC Developer Mode instructions and PC-only recorder add-ons do not apply to Xbox or PlayStation.

On a console, use a user-facing Replay command if the installed simulator version provides one. If no Replay option appears, platform video capture can preserve the landing as it happened, but it cannot provide a new camera angle afterwards or reconstruct the flight as simulator data.

Should you use a Flight Recorder or replay mod in MSFS?

A PC Flight Recorder add-on is useful when you want a simpler interface, persistent recordings or features the built-in MSFS replay tool does not provide.

Programs labelled Flight Recorder generally save aircraft movement and selected simulator variables; they do not produce an MP4 or other finished video. Some can play a recording as another aircraft, which is useful for formation flying or filming, but support for custom avionics, animations and multiple aircraft varies.

Check that a replay mod explicitly supports MSFS 2020 or MSFS 2024 and the installed simulator build. Some packages go in the Community folder, while others run as external programs and communicate with the simulator, so follow the package’s own installation instructions rather than assuming every recorder installs the same way. PC users can check our MSFS freeware and add-on library for compatible utilities.

How does replay work in other flight simulators?

Each simulator records a different mixture of position, control input and system state, so tracks are not interchangeable between products.

• FSX: Instant Replay is suitable for quickly reviewing a recent take-off, approach or landing. It is a rolling review rather than a dependable archive of a complete flight; our step-by-step FSX Instant Replay instructions explain the basic workflow.
• Prepar3D: Replay facilities vary by release. Test complex aircraft before relying on a long recording because custom systems may not reproduce correctly.
• X-Plane: Replay mode provides a timeline for reviewing recent flying, and supported desktop versions can save replay data. Aircraft systems controlled by plug-ins may not return to every recorded state.
• DCS: A track records simulation events rather than rendered video frames. Short tracks are useful for review, but long or busy missions can diverge during playback.

Why does a flight replay desynchronise or play incorrectly?

A replay desynchronises when the simulator reconstructs events differently instead of displaying a recording of every rendered frame.

• The aircraft leaves the recorded path: use shorter tracks and avoid time acceleration, repeated pauses, aircraft changes and large simulation-rate adjustments.
• The recording is empty: opening a replay window may not start recording. Run a short test and confirm that its timer or timeline advances.
• Gear, flaps or controls do not move: the recorder may not capture custom aircraft variables. Retest with a default aircraft; if that works, the limitation is probably aircraft-specific.
• Cockpit displays show the wrong state: custom avionics can recalculate their state during playback. Use the same aircraft and add-on version, and do not treat replayed instrument indications as an exact data record.
• Weather or traffic changes: live weather and online or random traffic may be generated again. Use preset weather and controlled traffic when visual consistency matters.
• The replay will not load: restore the aircraft, livery and scenery used to create it. Major simulator or aircraft updates can make older recordings incompatible.
• Playback stutters: replay and video encoding compete for processor and graphics resources. Reduce graphics or camera load before capturing the final footage.

Touchdown animation is another weak point. A positional recorder may reproduce the flight path while missing exact tyre spin, suspension movement, spoiler timing or gear compression. Use telemetry or a video captured during the live landing if those details are needed for technical analysis.

Does replay preserve cockpit audio and radio calls?

Replay may reproduce engine and environmental sounds without preserving every radio call, microphone input or sound generated by an external aircraft module.

If dialogue or live ATC audio is essential, record the original flight with screen-capture software and confirm that the correct simulator, microphone and communications audio sources are included. Do not rely on a replay track as the only copy of important audio.

Can you share an MSFS replay with another simmer?

You can share a replay file only when the recipient has a compatible simulator build and the required aircraft, livery, scenery and recorder add-on.

Include the simulator edition, aircraft version and required add-ons with the file. For general sharing, export or capture a video instead; the viewer then needs only a normal media player, and the result cannot break after a simulator update.