How do I use the built-in Flight Planner in Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX)?
To use the built-in Flight Planner in Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX), open Free Flight, click Flight Planner, choose your departure and destination airports, pick a route type, then let FSX build and load the plan. You can then fly it with the GPS, radios, autopilot and default ATC.
What the FSX Flight Planner actually does
The built-in planner is FSX's basic route builder. It creates a point-to-point flight plan between airports, can use direct GPS routing, VORs or IFR airways, and generates a nav log for the trip. In both boxed FSX and FSX: Steam Edition, it works much the same way.
It is useful, but it is not a modern airline dispatcher or full FMS route planner. It does the job well for default flying, training, and simple IFR or VFR trips. For complex procedures, it shows its age.
How do I create a flight plan in FSX?
- Open Free Flight. From the main FSX screen, go to the normal flight setup page where you choose your aircraft, airport, time and weather.
- Open Flight Planner. Click the Flight Planner button to bring up the route planner window.
- Set your departure airport. Enter or choose the airport you want to depart from. Using the correct ICAO code is the quickest method if you know it.
- Set your destination airport. Choose the arrival airport in the same way.
- Pick a route type. This is the important choice. FSX can plan a straight GPS route, a VOR-based route, or an IFR airway route depending on how you want to fly.
- Build the route. Use the route-finding option and let FSX generate the plan. It will usually show you a route summary and a list of waypoints or navaids.
- Review the nav log. Check distance, headings, estimated time and the sequence of waypoints. If the route looks odd, go back and try a different route type.
- Load the plan. Confirm the route so FSX loads it into the flight. FSX may ask whether you want to move the aircraft to the departure airport if you are currently parked somewhere else.
- Set runway or parking. Back on the Free Flight screen, make sure your starting runway or gate makes sense for the route and aircraft.
- Start the flight. Once in the cockpit, use the GPS, radios, map, kneeboard nav log and ATC to fly the plan.
Which route type should I choose?
| Route type | Best for | How FSX handles it |
|---|---|---|
| Direct GPS | Simple VFR or basic IFR trips, especially in default GA aircraft | Creates a straight-line route between waypoints and is easy to follow on the GPS |
| VOR to VOR | Traditional radio navigation training | Builds a route using VOR stations that you track with NAV radios |
| Low-altitude airways | Props, turboprops and lower IFR cruising altitudes | Uses the lower airway network and is usually more suitable for slower aircraft |
| High-altitude airways | Jets and higher IFR cruise levels | Uses the upper airway structure and suits faster aircraft better |
If you are new to FSX, we normally suggest starting with Direct GPS. It is the easiest to understand because the route appears clearly on the GPS and the moving map. Once that makes sense, move to VOR to VOR for radio navigation practice or IFR airways when you want a more structured route.
How to fly the flight plan once FSX loads it
Flying it with the GPS
For a direct GPS route, the easiest method is to follow the GPS course line. In many default FSX aircraft, the autopilot can track the GPS flight plan, but only if the aircraft is set to take navigation from the GPS rather than the NAV radio.
This is where many people get stuck. If the aircraft has a NAV/GPS switch or similar selector and it is left in NAV, the autopilot will try to follow the tuned radio instead of the GPS route. Switch the source correctly before engaging the navigation tracking mode.
Flying it with VORs
If you chose VOR to VOR, tune each VOR frequency in sequence from the nav log, identify it if you want to be proper about it, set the course, and track the radial. This is more hands-on than GPS flying, but it teaches you a lot about old-school IFR navigation.
Do not expect the GPS magenta line to be the whole story when flying a VOR route. The route exists in the plan, but you still need to manage the radios properly if you want to fly it the traditional way.
Flying it with default ATC
FSX's built-in ATC works best when you create an IFR plan. You can request clearance, receive altitude changes and often get vectors for approach. It is not especially realistic by modern standards, but it does tie into the planner reasonably well.
With a VFR or simple GPS route, default ATC is more limited. You may still use the plan for navigation, but you should not expect full IFR handling unless the route and flight rules match.
Why is my FSX aircraft not following the flight plan?
The most common cause is that the aircraft is following the wrong navigation source. The route may be loaded perfectly, but the autopilot will ignore it if the plane is set to track NAV1 instead of the GPS.
- Wrong source selected — switch from NAV radio to GPS if you want to follow a GPS plan.
- No proper intercept — many autopilots need you to capture the course from a sensible angle rather than from miles off to one side.
- Wrong route type for the aircraft — a slow piston aircraft on a high-altitude airway plan can feel awkward and unrealistic.
- Expecting ATC to fly it for you — ATC may re-vector, shorten, or simplify parts of the route.
- Using a complex add-on aircraft — some advanced aircraft do not rely on the default FSX planner in the same way as the default fleet.
Can I save and reuse an FSX flight plan?
Yes. FSX lets you save the plan and reload it later, which is handy if you fly the same route often or want to practise a specific trip. Saved plans are especially useful for training circuits between the same pair of airports, short IFR practice flights and repeatable VOR exercises.
If you want to keep a whole setup, not just the route, you can also save the flight itself from within FSX. That stores more than the flight plan alone, including aircraft state and location, but a saved flight and a saved route are not quite the same thing.
What are the limits of the built-in Flight Planner?
FSX's planner is good for straightforward navigation, but it has real limits. It does not behave like a modern airline route system, and it is not the right tool if you want highly detailed real-world procedure work.
- Limited procedure depth — SIDs, STARs and RNAV detail are basic or absent compared with newer platforms and advanced avionics.
- Occasionally odd routing — the automatic route generator can produce routes that are technically valid but not especially sensible.
- ATC simplification — default ATC may ignore parts of the route, re-vector you early or assign clumsy altitude changes.
- No modern dispatch logic — fuel, winds, airway optimisation and traffic flow are not part of the planner in any serious way.
That does not make it useless. For many FSX pilots, especially those flying default aircraft or learning core navigation skills, it is still perfectly serviceable.
Best way to learn the FSX Flight Planner
We recommend starting with a short route between two nearby airports in a default single-engine aircraft. Build one Direct GPS flight first, then fly the same route again as VOR to VOR. Seeing the same trip flown two different ways makes the planner much easier to understand.
After that, try a short IFR airway flight in a turboprop or small jet and use default ATC from start to finish. Keep the route short enough that you can watch what FSX is doing rather than spend an hour just cruising.
Quick summary
The built-in FSX Flight Planner is used from the Free Flight screen to create routes between airports. Choose your departure and destination, select the route type that suits your aircraft, load the plan, then fly it using the GPS, nav radios, autopilot and ATC. For simple navigation and training, it still does the job well.