It would be great if .pln files created with external Flight Planning Tools like SimBrief could be imported into MSFS 2020 on Xbox. I know Simlink is currently not available and will not be in the foreseeable future. But a simple import from USB Stick or through an upload to your Xbox Profile should be easy to do and would add a lot of value.
I think Simbrief uses the latest AIRAC from Navigraph, and you can’t install Navigraph latest AIRAC on Xbox.
Won’t happen, unfortunately. It’s a limitation of the platform. Any feature from the PC version that’s possible to add is there already. Anything that isn’t can’t be due to the locked down hardware on the console.
Find a way of unlocking it 
This is a request you need to send directly to the devs of the XBOX. They need to make it so there is a way for the console to use these types of files and also use external programs like Crunch is talking about. Unfortunately there is no way in its’ current state that XBOX can save and process .pln files from SimBrief. No idea how hard it would be to make it so it works but definitely need to take this issue to the XBOX forums and hope they will address it. Personally I think it would be a great thing to happen for XBOX users, just not sure it would rank up very high on the devs things to do for XBOX as the use cases and customers requesting this feature may not rank very high up there compared to other things people want the devs to work on. Good luck though at minimum hopefully you guys can at least get an answer and if you do post back here and tell us what XBOX devs have to say regarding this issue.
Let’s fix PC bugs first before focusing on small things for Xbox that most Xbox users won’t even use…
Using an Xbox for a flight simulator is beyond my comprehension, the point of the flght sim hobby is that you can expand the simulator with add-ons and dedicated hardware, I just don’t get it.
Well these issues people are asking about XBOX would have absolutely nothing to do with the development of this game. The only people who can give what they are asking for is the XBOX dev team and it wouldn’t affect whether PC bugs get fixed or don’t get fixed.
I definitely feel the same way as you. There are a couple advantages of using a XBOX though. The cost of entry is definitely a very good thing. I think it would be a great thing if XBOX users could do all the things and add-ons that PC users can use. I just don’t know how realistic that would be though. I doubt XBOX dev team has very high on their priorities to unlock the security that make it impossible to use external apps for what would be a very small user base compared to the XBOX community as a whole. Unfortunately this all is probably more like a pipe dream.
we need to tickle microsoft for that, but i have no high hopes there.
Like I said, that’s not even an option since the security lockouts are baked into the Xbox hardware. That’s what being in a walled garden ecosystem is. Nothing from the outside gets in.
It’s easy, I have family and a Baby on the way. I have a perfectly fine working Laptop that is fine for all my every day needs but would never ever support the Flight Sim. In the past I have build a High End PC for every new MSFS that was released, but this time that is not an option. For me it is get back into Simming with the Xbox or don’t use the Sim, period. I am an aviation enthusiast and I have used every Flight Sim since the early 90s. I also hold a multi engine commercial pilots license with an instrument rating and I used to work as a Flight Instructor. Yes, addons are nice, and I am sure that more and more will be available for Xbox. The only thing that I would like to see fixed as soon as possible is the circle back to the last waypoint when selecting an approach in flight on the G1000/3000.
Why all the hate towards people that enjoy the Sim on Xbox? Please get off your High Horse, also people on Xboxes can be serious Simmers…
I disagree with your flat assertions that this is somehow utterly impossible. Microsoft owns the hardware platform and could easily make things happen.
It’s not unheard of for closed platforms to allow various ways to load files. On the PlayStation, for example, you can load user created “Option Files” that totally overwrite the default leagues and players in Pro Evolution Soccer. Sony allows them to do this.
This was possible on Xbox as well till Microsoft decided to block it.
The developer (Asobo) does not have the ability to do this, but Microsoft - as the keeper of the keys to the locked ecosystem - can.
Even as a closed and locked system, it’s possible to enable developer mode and then install RetroArch and then play all manner of retro games from the NES, SNES, PS2, etc on the Xbox Series X/S. That also involves accessing files stores on an external device. Lots of videos on YouTube that show how to do this.
So yes, it’s not possible right now, but there’s nothing stopping Microsoft from making it possible if enough people ask for it and it makes sense from a business perspective. Allowing MSFS to read text files from an attached USB device is not going to suddenly make the Xbox ecosystem wide open to piracy.
Exactly, I wasn’t asking about a full SimConnect integration (even so it would be nice). But importing a simple .pln file shouldn’t be such a big deal.
Yeah, I’m with you on this. The Xbox Series X is a very capable device, more so than many PCs out there. Yes, the PC will always be the more versatile platform, but it’s already possible to have a “real sim” experience on the Xbox. I flew the A320 from Zurich to Naples and there really wasn’t much difference from how I do it on the PC. No Navigraph or LNM, but I planned a route, flew the SID and STAR, landed via ILS, etc etc. It was fine.
I prefer my PC for the more complicated flights, but the Xbox is fun to use - and it’s hooked up to a very large 4K TV in my living room, so my whole family can have fun flying around.
Don’t get me wrong, If I had the choice between the Xbox and a High End PC I would definitely go for the PC, no question about that. But still, the experience on the Xbox is very good. I have a Hotas and Rudderpedals connected and I also use Keyboard and Mouse. I use Navigraph charts and approach plates for my flights. While I was still an active Pilot we were using Paper IFR Charts and the Jeppesen book with all the approach plates, so that’s a bit like now in the Sim.
I don’t disagree it SHOULD be possible to do it. But ultimately, what you and I think doesn’t matter, nor does our difference of opinion matter. Perhaps Microsoft will find a way to throw Xbox users a bone here and allow you to bring flight plans over if the feature is requested enough. Creating a wishlist topic about this may be a good idea to get some votes on it. It would get mine, even though I don’t own an Xbox.
My skepticism about it is based on this being Microsoft and how they choose to curate their walled garden. What you can do on other consoles is irrelevant. Microsoft have not been very good about opening up their console to external files. That’s the reason they bake that security right into the hardware vs other platforms that have much of it at an OS level. Hence why these devices can hacked relatively easily by comparison to Xbox.
The other consoles also lock down on a hardware level - the Xbox isn’t unique on how it does that. As far as I know the PS5 has not been hacked .. yet, and neither has the Series X.
I’ve owned every Xbox from the X360 on as well as the PS3, PS4, and PS5, and the old consoles were eventually hacked with hardware mods (you buy a chip and solder it directly across specific CPU pins) or software mods (you plug the DVD drive into a PC and write special firmware on it). Time will tell if MS/Sony have done a better job this time around.
Also, Microsoft has, in fact, made it possible to access files - like I said, look up RetroArch on Xbox Series X. You can even install a “File Explorer”.
If it’s possible right now for other programs (RetroArch is just one example), hopefully it will be possible for MSFS soon.
They all have hardware lockdowns. No question there. MS are just a little more draconian and have it all at a hardware level. But I get it. They sell you a $1200 computer for $500 in order to tie you into their subscription model and digital products. They don’t want anyone bypassing those like the older systems…
Indeed. I still have an old original Xbox somewhere in storage that had a mod chip.
Haha yeah, those mod chips were fun! I also have the Nintendo Switch with the firmware bug that allows you to install Linux directly - that was interesting to do.
We’re heading to a all-subscription future anyway and since MSFS actually needs to be connected to the internet 100% of the time for the full experience, it’s probably the most un-pirateable game out there.
It’s going to be interesting seeing which direction they choose to go in - will they make the XBox more open (more peripherals, more addons, more functionality) or will they keep it tightly locked down and encourage people who want more to buy a PC. I feel they will open it up a little and allow a few things, but let’s see what happens over the next few months.