FBW and ATC

User Support Hub ATC, Traffic & NAVAIDs
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I haven’t flown with FBW for months. Previously, and following the indications in their website, I didn’t load the flightplan in the world map, only in the MCDU (from Simbrief). In this way, I still was able to interact with the ATC. But yesterday (with the last updated version) it wasn’t possible to obtain the clearance of my flightplan.

Searching info I’ve seen a couple videos where they added the flightplan in the world map and then in the MCDU too. In the FBW webpage, they still recommend don’t do it…

What is the best way to proceed for being able to interact with the ATC?

Regards.

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Just ask for vfr clearance, enable ifr ignore, if your at one of “those” airports… (Auckland is one of those) acknowledge the last “you are leaving the airspace please…” put on some Pink Floyd, sit back, relax and enjoy your in-flight entertainment :airplane::wink::stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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I would prefer to maintain the interaction with the ATC.

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Set flight plan sync to “None” in the EFB. Exit the plane to the main menu, then go back to the world map and load in your fight plan.

When in the plane, import your Simbrief plan.

ATC will use the world map, but the plane will use the imported Simbrief plan.

This mostly works. You’ll still find some waypoints are a bit different, but I fly this way all the time and it’s my favorite way.

2 Likes
5

Great, it works. Thank you.

Is there any way to indicate the gate/parking position on the simbrief flight plan? I see the sim still changes the flight plan when you add the gate in the world map.

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I think if you select the parking spot from the drop down menu (don’t click the spot on the map), it will leave the rest of the flight plan alone.

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I think I’ve found a method to avoid this bug, because it still persists even selecting the gate from drop down menu: The problem is once you select the gate, as the sid and the star/app aren’t selected from the menu, the sim modify the flightplan. But, once you have loaded the flightplan from simbrief, if you select them from the drop menu (as is specified in the simbrief FP), and THEN the gates, it doesn’t modify the FP :slight_smile:

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Thanks for the tip.
Ps., Many of us also like to plan our routes in LittleNavMap - which generates .PLN files. These import very nicley into the World Map, great for ATC etc. and with SIDs and STARs intact. However, what’s the best way of getting this PLN data also into the MCDU of the of the FBW without typing it all in again ?

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You can copy the LNM fight plan route to Simbrief, generate the flight, then import when in the plane.

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Or the other way round. I create my IFR plans in Simbrief which usually gives me the correct runway and SID/STAR, then export them to LNM where I add the parking spot. Save this as a .pln then export it to the sim via the LNM menu which keeps everything intact and ATC thereafter usually works fine. In aircraft that have the facility I import from Simbrief direct to the MFD - in the FBW ensure flight plan sync is set to none in the EFB.

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Ok, understood. However, even if I did have a paid subscription to Simbrief, I’d never want to plan my custom routes in that tool. Simbrief basically gives you what it wants to give you. And it’s route-generating map is feeble compared to LNM’s. But I’ll try the import method that BigCow74 suggests – though I still fear that it will corrupt the route due to its mismatched AIRAC cycle (versus what is already in the sim).

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I do have a Navigraph/Simbrief sub so everything is if course synchronised. But I wouldn’t have thought the AIRAC changes that much to cause problems. Unless of course you’re unlucky enough to be in one of those changed areas.
But if you find something that works for you go with it!

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You’re right – Yesterday I designed a test-case route from EGKK to LGAV using LNM, including SID & STAR, and also the starting point: Gate 21. The plan contained a mixture of usual GPS waypoints and VOR navaids.

I saved that (from LNM) as a .PLN file

I also used LNM’s send to Simbrief function – which transmits it directly to my Simbrief [basic] account.

I switched over to Simbrief in the web browser which told me that the plan it received from LNM was all ok – even the SID, STAR and en-route VORs.

From Simbrief I generated the Operational Flight Plan (OFP) and also exported as a PLN file for FS2020’s ATC (and also to compare with the LNM-generated .PLN file).

Next I headed over to the World Map in FS2020 and loaded the .PLN file that Simbrief had produced. All looked good, Runway, SID & STAR all correct. I then selected Gate 21.

(I also selected the FBW A32NX - Experimental version).

Once inside the cockpit parked at the gate, and even before I activated the FlyPad EFB, I noticed that the route was already correctly loaded into the MCDU & Nav display! (ie from the World Map).

In the MCDU I removed two discontinuities – which is normal for the A320 Family.

So it looks like FBW has fixed the World Map MCDU glitch at last: ie you can now go straight from the World Map & .PLN file import to the cockpit of the FBW in the Experimental version. (no corruptions in the route waypoints & VORs – and no more loop-backs etc.) The arrival runway ILS frequency was also present in the Rad-Nav page.

When I did load up the FlyPad I entered my Simbrief pilot ID and it loaded the OFP. This was useful because I could auto-fuel-up the aircraft directly from the data in the OFP. ‘Data Init Request’ in the MCDU also fills in various fields directly from the Simbrief OFP.

Everything went perfectly after that. The ATC approved the route, the taxi guidance took me to the correct runway; I took off, went into autopilot ‘Managed-climb’ mode to FL390.

I then left my PC for two hours to go out for some dinner – leaving the sim running and the FBW’s autopilot solely in charge of the flight.

When I got back I could see from the recorded track in LNM that the aircraft obeyed all the VNAV constraints along the way up and had followed the route accurately along the way during my absence. Subsequently ATC advised me when to descend, and the aircraft obeyed all constraints on the way back down - to a smooth ILS-guided landing.

Conclusions:
~ You can design your flight – any kind of route you like – using LittleNavMap and it works well both with Simbrief and the World Map.
~ A route entered on World Map (or imported from a .PLN file) now works directly with FBW A32NX’s MCDU.
~ LNM can send its flight plan directly to Simbrief; LNM can also retrieve your current flight plan directly from your Simbrief account.

Summary:
~ For a quick flight in the FBW (Experimental version), you can just use the World Map and go from there straight into the cockpit, ie:
World Map>MCDU (for both ATC and MCDU)

Or to design a more interesting route:
LNM>World Map>MCDU (for both ATC and MCDU)

~ For planning all the fine details, to have a full OFP, you can use:

LNM>Simbrief>World Map (for the ATC)
AND:
LNM>Simbrief>FlyPad>MCDU

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Interesting to see that we more or less have come to a similar workflow … Indeed today the best way to plan IFR is a mix of LNM and Simbrief.

Which is annoying at times because MSFS and Simbrief do not have the same navdata, and sometimes Simbrief refuses some waypoints (for example tonight, waypoint RONLU on jetway UL349 over Jamaica). No big deal though … If it happens too much I may end up considering Navigraph.

But there’s so much we can already do with free tools !