Flightplan XML formats

FlightGear use a few different flightplan XML formats stored in property-list xml files. Due to different needs the flightplans used in the route manager and AI scenarios and have different formats.

AI flightplans

See also AI Scenarios#Flightplans and Their Waypoints or AI groundvehicles#The flightplan.

These flightplans contain only waypoints. By tying an AI flightplan to an AI model in a scenario xml file, an AI scenario will be created.

Waypoint tags

Each waypoint can contain the following tags:

Tag	Type	Use	Remarks
<name>	string	Waypoint name	The last waypoint use EOF, or if the AI model is to be deleted END.
<lat>	double	Latitude, decimal degrees
<lon>	double	Longitude, decimal degrees
<alt>	double	Altitude above mean sea level, feet
<crossat>	double	Crossing altitude, feet
<ktas>	double	True air speed, knots
<on-ground>	bool	Set to true or 1 if on ground Set to false or 0 if in air or in a tunnel
<gear-down>	double	true for gear down false for gear up	Or any number between 0 and 1
<flaps-down>	double	true for flaps down false for flaps up	Or any number between 0 and 1

Example

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<PropertyList>
  <flightplan>
    <wpt>
      <name>First!</name>
      <lat>53.6762</lat>
      <lon>-1.39984</lon>
      <alt>1000</alt>
      <ktas>120</ktas>
      <on-ground>false</on-ground>
      <gear-down>1</gear-down>
      <flaps-down>0.25</flaps-down>
    </wpt>
    ...
    <wpt>
      <name>END</name>
    </wpt>
  </flightplan>
</PropertyList>

Route manager flightplans

See also Route manager#Defining a Route.

Route manager waypoints are a bit more complex, for starters they contain departure and destination information and not just one type of waypoint.

Note that the first and last waypoint are the departure and destination airports.

There is also support for Level-D 767 SID:s and STAR:s in FlightGear.

Departure and destination tags

Tag	Type	Use	Remarks
<airport>	string	The ICAO identifier of the airport
<sid>	string	Any available SID
<star>	string	Any available STAR
<transition>	string
<runway>	string	Departure or destination runway

Waypoint types and tags

Tag	Type	Use	Remarks
<type>	string	Type of waypoint. Either runway, navaid or offset-navaid
<alt-restrict>	string
<altitude-ft>	double	Altitude in feet
<ident>	string	If <type> is runway: The departure or destination airport's runway number. Accompanied in the waypoint by the <icao> tag. navaid: Any significant point along the route. Both airports, navaids and fixes. offset-navaid: An point offset from a navaid by a bearing and distance. Note that true bearings are used here.
<icao>	string	ICAO code of an airport	Used only if <type> is runway
<lon>	double	Longitude of the waypoint in decimal degrees
<lat>	double	Latitude of the waypoint in decimal degrees
<radial-deg>	double	True bearing from a navaid, fix or airport	Note Radials on charts are magnetic!
<distance-nm>	double	Distance from a navaid, fix or airport

Example

<?xml version="1.0"?>

<PropertyList>
  <version type="int">2</version>
  <departure>
    <airport type="string">KOAK</airport>
    <sid type="string">(none)</sid>
    <runway type="string">29</runway>
  </departure>
  <destination>
    <airport type="string">KSJC</airport>
    <star type="string">(none)</star>
    <transition type="string"></transition>
    <runway type="string">11</runway>
  </destination>
  <route>
    <wp>
      <type type="string">runway</type>
      <departure type="bool">true</departure>
      <generated type="bool">true</generated>
      <ident type="string">29</ident>
      <icao type="string">KOAK</icao>
    </wp>
    <wp n="1">
      <type type="string">offset-navaid</type>
      <alt-restrict type="string">at</alt-restrict>
      <altitude-ft type="double">7500</altitude-ft>
      <ident type="string">SFO</ident>
      <lon type="double">-122.3738889</lon>
      <lat type="double">37.61947222</lat>
      <radial-deg type="double">88.22972768</radial-deg>
      <distance-nm type="double">16</distance-nm>
    </wp>
    <wp n="2">
      <type type="string">navaid</type>
      <alt-restrict type="string">at</alt-restrict>
      <altitude-ft type="double">10000</altitude-ft>
      <ident type="string">MISON</ident>
      <lon type="double">-121.890306</lon>
      <lat type="double">37.496806</lat>
    </wp>
    <wp n="3">
      <type type="string">runway</type>
      <arrival type="bool">true</arrival>
      <generated type="bool">true</generated>
      <ident type="string">11</ident>
      <icao type="string">KSJC</icao>
    </wp>
  </route>
</PropertyList>

Using the flightplans in FlightGear

Through the route manager

See Route manager for the main article about this subject.

For AI models

See AI Systems#AI Models for the main article about this subject.

Related content

Wiki articles

• Howto:Add procedures to the route manager
• AI Systems
• Howto:Create a flightplan – Contains no information whatsoever on using flightplans in FlightGear though.
• AI Traffic#An example of a traffic file – Not flightplans per see as they only cover cruise altitude and departure and destination airport.
• List of Nasal extension functions#flightplan()
• Nasal Flightplan
• PropertyList XML File
• UFO from the 'White Project' of the UNESCO

Source code

• flightgear/flightgear/next/src/Navaids/FlightPlan.hxx
• flightgear/flightgear/next/src/Navaids/FlightPlan.cxx

AI flightplans

• flightgear/flightgear/next/src/AIModel/AIFlightPlan.hxx
• flightgear/flightgear/next/src/AIModel/AIFlightPlan.cxx

Route manager flightplans

• flightgear/flightgear/next/src/Autopilot/route_mgr.hxx
• flightgear/flightgear/next/src/Autopilot/route_mgr.cxx