[IFR] ATC Asks for Higher Altitudes than Aircraft is Capable of

Bug Reporting Hub ATC, Traffic & NAVAIDs
, , ,
1

ISSUE DESCRIPTION

Description of the issue:

When flying IFR, ATC asks me to climb to an altitude that’s above my aircraft’s service ceiling. For example, when flying a C172 on IFR with a filed flight plan altitude of 9,000 ft, ATC will suddenly ask me to climb to 15,000 ft. (C172 service ceiling is 14,400 ft, also aircraft is unpressurized so crew can’t breathe at that altitude)

If applicable, which aircraft is experiencing this issue:

All piston naturally-aspirated General Aviation aircraft.

[PC Only] Did you remove all your community mods/add-ons? If yes, are you still experiencing the issue?

Yes, issue still persists

FREQUENCY OF ISSUE

How often does this occur for you (Example: Just once, every time on sim load, intermittently)?

Every time I fly a free flight with an IFR flight plan filed

REPRODUCTION STEPS

Please list clear steps you took in order to help our test team reproduce the same issue:

  1. Create a flight plan using FS2024 Flight Planner website
  2. Start a Free Flight
  3. Import flight plan into FS2024 using the EFB
  4. Double-check that the plan’s altitude is in FT, set altitude ranging from 6,000 to 9,000 ft
  5. File plan with ATC
  6. Fly

YOUR SETTINGS

If the issue still occurs with no mods and add-ons, please continue to report your issue. If not, please move this post to the User Support Hub.

What peripherals are you using, if relevant:

Not relevant

[PC Only] Are you using Developer Mode or have you made any changes to it?

No Dev Mode, no changes to simulator

[PC, MSFS 2020 Only] Are you using DX11 or DX12?

[PC Only] What GPU (Graphics Card) do you use?

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT

[PC Only] What other relevant PC specs can you share?

MEDIA

Do not have screenshots, sorry. Will update this post with a screenshot of ATC logs when I capture the incident on another free flight.

[END OF FIRST USER REPORT]

:loudspeaker: For anyone who wants to contribute on this issue, Click on the button below to use this template:

Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
•

Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
•

If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
•

2

ISSUE DESCRIPTION

Using any IFR flight plan filed using the EFB and “Send Plan to ATC” - ATC will not honor the planned cruise altitude and instructs player to keep climbing in 2,000’ increments, even beyond aircraft service ceiling. This is a consistent and reproducible defect.

If applicable, which aircraft is experiencing this issue:

All sim aircraft using Flight Planner and EFB in MSFS 2024

[PC Only] Did you remove all your community mods/add-ons? If yes, are you still experiencing the issue?

Yes

FREQUENCY OF ISSUE

How often does this occur for you (Example: Just once, every time on sim load, intermittently)?

Consistent with every flight using EFB Flight Planner

REPRODUCTION STEPS

Please list clear steps you took in order to help our test team reproduce the same issue:

Using any IFR flight plan filed using the EFB and “Send Plan to ATC” - ATC will not honor the planned cruise altitude and instructs player to keep climbing in 2,000’ increments, even beyond aircraft service ceiling. This is a consistent and reproducible defect.

Filed with Zendesk as Ticket No. 240437

YOUR SETTINGS

If the issue still occurs with no mods and add-ons, please continue to report your issue. If not, please move this post to the User Support Hub.

What peripherals are you using, if relevant:

N/A

[PC Only] Are you using Developer Mode or have you made any changes to it?

No

[PC, MSFS 2020 Only] Are you using DX11 or DX12?

[PC Only] What GPU (Graphics Card) do you use?

[PC Only] What other relevant PC specs can you share?

MEDIA

Please add a screenshot or video of the issue occurring.

[END OF FIRST USER REPORT]

:loudspeaker: For anyone who wants to contribute on this issue, Click on the button below to use this template:

Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
•

Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
•

If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
•

3

Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
• Yes

Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
• Same problem

If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
•

4

The only times when ATC would request me to climb above filed cruising altitude was for terrain clearance and to meet minimum altitude in approaches. Have you checked if that was the case for the requests?

5

Flat terrain off the coast of Southern New England MEA is 5000’ for low IFR. I was outside Class B. A/C service ceiling in 31000. ATC last instruction before I terminated the flight was climb to FL320. In the space of five minutes I received multiple instructions from 6,000 to FL320. It’s quite broken.

6

Can confirm issue. I have the same problem.

1 Like
7

I had it yesterday. I was to climb FL1000 with my 737. I couldn’t cancel IFR as the commands were
comming too quick.

8

Still wrong though.

If terrain clearance exceeds aircraft ceiling, the plan shouldn’t be accepted on delivery. Or, in carrer mode, the mission shouldn’t be generated.

When the arrival procedure requires a higher altitude, ATC shoud be able to manage it. IRL it will accept the aircraft and handle themselves the separation. If it’s “too complicated” for the default ATC, it should at least let us report some “unable to comply” and avoid the endless loop.

2 Likes
9

That’s right. But I don’t think that over the north of Africa I need to go up to FL1000 (100.000 Ft) to stay clear of terrain…

10

And it started at my cruiselevel FL380. It constantly increasing by 2000 ft

11

Check your plan before Fly Now. EFB will change your cruise level without your consent at times. That’s one of three places I triple check before sending to ATC, then Avionics.

If you can do that, guaranteed you’ll be cleared to cruise literally on the ramp, no stops.

12

I have been cleared for FL380. When on my flight from Frankfurt to Agadir. It started, when I was handed over to Marseille Control.

13

I just flew halfway across US in three segments, with the AGL rising naturally W-E. Been handed off to multiple control sectors, no issues.

14

Today this stuff didn’t happen. But yesterday on 3 different flights. On 2 of them I was able to cancel IFR.

15

I have the same issue when flying IFR. Usually I do not get clearance to descend approach or landing and need to switch to VFR, otherwise I get the Please expedite your climb instruction.

16

Agreed, the lack of the option to tell ATC “unable” became apparent to me yesterday.

In career mode, cruising along at 8K after requesting altitude decrease from 18K, I got the call from ATC to clear me into the approach. But they wanted me to climb back to 18K feet.

Of course I’m not going to do that because I’m 50 nm from the field, and the aircraft just won’t be able to do it, so I stayed at 8K getting “expedite climb” messages for the next 20 minutes. The rest of the approach went fine, I was cleared down to 4K at the appropriate time, flew my procedure, and landed.

Ignoring the climb instruction did not affect the flow of the approach at all.

Having an option to tell ATC “nah bro” in this scenario would have been nice, even if all it does is shut them up about the climb.

OR…even better…maybe they fix the ATC so the procedure begins at my current cruise altitude, rather than being instructed to climb to an irrelevant altitude based on a filed plan that is no longer useful.

1 Like
17

In 2020 since around SU12, and now more recently in 2024 SU2 Beta, ATC on IFR is consistently calling for descent near the calculated ToD - as long as my flight plan was created in an external EFB and correctly imported into 2020/2024.

SIDs and STARs, especially with MANSEQ legs, are still not understood - at least not from an ATC perspective.

18

ISSUE DESCRIPTION

Description of the issue:
I started a cargo medium mission without touching the EFB. After I started to rollout, I can see it requires me to climb and maintain FL440. My aircraft is just a Cessna 208B with the service ceiling of 24800ft.

Yes, I can lower it in the ATC menu. But the default flight plan should take my plane’s limit into account.

If applicable, which aircraft is experiencing this issue:

[PC Only] Did you remove all your community mods/add-ons? If yes, are you still experiencing the issue?

FREQUENCY OF ISSUE

How often does this occur for you (Example: Just once, every time on sim load, intermittently)?
Just once. But I also encountered FL250 once.

REPRODUCTION STEPS

Please list clear steps you took in order to help our test team reproduce the same issue:

  1. Start a mission in career mode
  2. Pick a mission randomly and leave EFB alone
  3. Spawn in

YOUR SETTINGS

If the issue still occurs with no mods and add-ons, please continue to report your issue. If not, please move this post to the User Support Hub.

What peripherals are you using, if relevant:

[PC Only] Are you using Developer Mode or have you made any changes to it?
No

[PC, MSFS 2020 Only] Are you using DX11 or DX12?

[PC Only] What GPU (Graphics Card) do you use?
5090

[PC Only] What other relevant PC specs can you share?

MEDIA

Please add a screenshot or video of the issue occurring.

[END OF FIRST USER REPORT]

:loudspeaker: For anyone who wants to contribute on this issue, Click on the button below to use this template:

Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
•

Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
•

If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
•

19

I had this issue last night with the sky courier, atc insist on FL450 max is FL250 :joy: and still can’t ask for a reduced altitude as I can’t get to it, only the first three selections available in the atc window, on Xbox so didn’t risk the efb and send to atc route as this will more than likely CTD due to the on screen keyboard poping up
Atc a well known issue but yet another beta build and still broken

20

Now, I check the EFB everytime