Update PMDG AIRAC navigation data in MSFS, Prepar3D or FSX, verify the FMC cycle, and fix wrong paths or an unchanged database.
To update PMDG AIRAC navigation data, install the database made for your exact PMDG aircraft and simulator with Navigraph’s navdata utility, fully restart the simulator, then check the active cycle on the FMC/CDU IDENT page. On PC, supported MSFS products use Navigraph Hub; older FSX and Prepar3D products use FMS Data Manager.
The PMDG FMC database is separate from airport scenery and, in MSFS, may also be separate from the simulator’s own navigation database. If the cycle numbering and validity dates are unfamiliar, our explanation of AIRAC cycles and simulator databases covers what each update changes.
Which AIRAC updater should I use for PMDG?
The correct updater depends on the simulator generation and the specific PMDG product.
| Platform | Normal installation method | Main check |
|---|---|---|
| MSFS 2020 or MSFS 2024 on Windows | Navigraph Hub and the package listed for the supported PMDG aircraft | Select the right simulator generation and aircraft package |
| Prepar3D | Navigraph FMS Data Manager | Confirm that the PMDG installation has been detected or mapped correctly |
| FSX | FMS Data Manager or a supported legacy PMDG installer | Install into the actual FSX/PMDG location, not an MSFS packages folder |
| Console editions of MSFS | Only an update explicitly delivered through the aircraft or console platform | Desktop navdata utilities cannot write directly to console storage |
A mistake we see constantly is updating only the base MSFS navdata package. If Navigraph Hub lists a separate package for the PMDG aircraft, that package must also be installed.
How do I install the new AIRAC cycle?
On Windows, close the simulator first and use the appropriate navdata manager to install the PMDG-specific dataset.
- Close the simulator. PMDG normally reads its database while the aircraft is loading, and open files can prevent a clean replacement.
- Open the correct navdata utility. Use Navigraph Hub for supported MSFS aircraft or FMS Data Manager for FSX and Prepar3D products.
- Find the exact PMDG package. Match both the aircraft and simulator. A PMDG 737 package for MSFS is not interchangeable with one intended for Prepar3D.
- Check the destination. If you have several simulator installations, a custom packages location or an add-on linker, make sure the manager is writing to the active installation.
- Install or update the dataset. Wait for the utility to report completion rather than closing it while files are being replaced.
- Restart the simulator and reload the aircraft. Open the FMC/CDU IDENT page and inspect the navigation-data cycle and validity dates.
For a legacy installation that FMS Data Manager does not detect, follow our step-by-step Prepar3D add-on mapping instructions. The same path-checking principle applies to FSX.
Does PMDG Operations Center update the AIRAC?
PMDG Operations Center updates aircraft software, product files and liveries, but it is not the normal installer for recurring AIRAC databases.
Aircraft updates and navigation-data updates are separate jobs. Our guide to the separate PMDG aircraft-update process in MSFS explains which files Operations Center handles. Updating the aircraft alone does not guarantee that its FMC contains the latest AIRAC cycle.
How can I confirm that the PMDG AIRAC update worked?
The cycle displayed inside the aircraft is the decisive check, not the status shown by the installer.
- Open the FMC/CDU and select the IDENT page; the exact key sequence varies between PMDG aircraft.
- Check the active navigation database cycle and its validity dates.
- Compare that cycle with the one the navdata manager says it installed.
- Test a procedure known to exist in that cycle, such as a recently changed SID, STAR or approach.
If the installer and FMC disagree, trust the FMC display: the aircraft is loading a different database from the one you updated.
Why does the PMDG FMC still show the old AIRAC?
An unchanged cycle almost always means the wrong package, simulator generation or installation path was selected.
- Wrong PMDG package: install the dataset for that exact aircraft and simulator, not merely the general simulator navdata.
- Wrong simulator path: remove or correct stale mappings left by an older FSX, Prepar3D or MSFS installation.
- Inactive Community folder: confirm which MSFS packages location is actually being used, especially after moving the simulator or using an add-on linker.
- Simulator left running: exit it fully, reinstall the data and load a fresh flight.
- Write failure: inspect the navdata manager’s status or log and check that the destination is writable.
- Unsupported legacy product: use only a dataset whose provider explicitly lists that PMDG version; copying another aircraft’s database is unsafe because formats and folder structures differ.
If the cycle is correct but a waypoint or procedure produces NOT IN DATABASE, check spelling, route syntax and cycle alignment. Our FMC database-error checks cover the next diagnostic steps.
Will an AIRAC update change runways or airport scenery?
No. A PMDG AIRAC update changes the FMC’s navigation records, including supported waypoints, airways and procedures; it does not rebuild the physical airport.
An updated procedure can therefore reference a renamed runway or waypoint that old scenery does not depict correctly. Keep the PMDG database, flight-planning data and charts on the same AIRAC cycle where possible, while treating scenery updates as a separate installation.