Update AIRAC data in Little Navmap, select the correct Navigraph mode, verify the cycle, and fix old-cycle or missing-procedure problems.
To update AIRAC data in Little Navmap, close the program, then install the Little Navmap dataset with a supported navigation-data updater such as Navigraph FMS Data Manager. Restart Little Navmap, select a Navigraph data mode, and confirm the displayed cycle. A scenery-library rescan alone does not update AIRAC data.
How do you install a new AIRAC cycle?
The safest method is to let the navigation-data updater detect and update Little Navmap rather than copying database files manually. Little Navmap, the simulator and individual aircraft can each use separate databases; our explanation of how separate simulator and add-on navdata databases are updated covers that distinction.
- Find the active Little Navmap installation. This matters if you have both an installed and a portable copy. An updater can successfully modify an old copy while the one you actually run continues showing the previous cycle.
- Close Little Navmap completely. This releases its navigation database and prevents a locked-file or incomplete-update problem.
- Open the supported data updater. Scan for installed add-ons and select the Little Navmap dataset. If automatic detection fails, create a mapping for the Little Navmap copy you actually use, following the folder selection requested by the updater.
- Install the required cycle. A current AIRAC package normally requires an appropriate navigation-data subscription. Updating the Little Navmap application itself does not guarantee that its AIRAC database has changed.
- Restart Little Navmap. Open the Scenery Library menu and its Navigraph submenu, then select the required data mode. Labels can differ slightly between Little Navmap releases.
- Verify the cycle number. Check the AIRAC cycle reported by Little Navmap against the cycle installed by the updater.
AIRAC cycles normally change every 28 days, but updating every cycle is only essential when you need to match current charts, procedures, routes or aircraft databases. Our guide to why AIRAC cycle numbers matter explains what happens when those sources disagree.
Which Little Navmap data mode should you choose?
For most users, Use Navigraph for Navaids and Procedures is the best balance because it combines updated navigation records with airport detail read from the simulator.
| Mode | When to use it |
|---|---|
| Use Navigraph for Navaids and Procedures | Choose this for normal planning with simulator-specific airport layouts, parking positions and updated procedures. |
| Use Navigraph for All Features | Choose this when consistency with the installed AIRAC is more important than simulator-specific airport records, or when diagnosing a conflict between scenery and navigation data. |
| Do Not Use Navigraph | Choose this only when you deliberately want Little Navmap to rely on the simulator scenery database. An installed Little Navmap AIRAC package will not be active in this mode. |
The hybrid mode can expose genuine differences between scenery and AIRAC data. For example, an older airport may use a retired runway identifier while the current procedure database uses its replacement.
How can you confirm the AIRAC update worked?
The displayed AIRAC number is the definitive check; seeing a new SID or waypoint on the map is not enough by itself.
- Confirm that Little Navmap reports the expected cycle after restarting.
- Check that a known airport's procedures appear under the active Navigraph mode.
- Recalculate or rebuild routes created under an older cycle because retired waypoints can remain in saved flight plans.
- Compare the Little Navmap cycle with the aircraft FMS cycle if you intend to export and load the same route.
Do not use Load Scenery Library as the AIRAC update method. That scan refreshes airports and other data read from the simulator; it does not download a newer Little Navmap navigation database. MSFS users can see the practical difference in our guide to adding MSFS 2024 scenery without confusing it with a navdata update. If simulator navigation files were updated separately, however, a subsequent scenery-library rebuild may be needed to import those changes.
Why does Little Navmap still show an old cycle or missing procedures?
An old cycle almost always means the updater targeted the wrong installation, Little Navmap is using the wrong data mode, or the database could not be replaced while the program was open.
- Wrong installation path: remove or correct stale updater mappings, especially if you changed from a standard installation to a portable copy.
- Navigraph data disabled: select one of the Navigraph modes. Installing the database does not force Little Navmap to use it.
- Database file locked: close every Little Navmap window and run the update again. Check folder permissions if the updater reports that installation failed.
- Procedure still missing: confirm that the airport and runway exist in that AIRAC cycle. A renamed runway, retired procedure or scenery airport using an obsolete identifier can produce an apparent mismatch.
- Aircraft rejects the route: update the aircraft's own navigation database or plan with procedures common to both cycles. Updating Little Navmap never updates an aircraft FMS automatically.
Avoid downloading an unverified database file and placing it into Little Navmap by hand. The correct package and updater preserve the expected database structure and reduce the risk of modifying the wrong copy.