You've probably seen them mentioned on forums, in SimBrief, or on VATSIM — SIDs and STARs. Maybe you've even tried loading one into the FMC and had no idea what half the numbers meant. You're not alone. These are real-world instrument procedures that airline pilots use every single day, and once you understand how to read them, your flights will feel significently more realistic.
We're going to use actual FAA plates from John F. Kennedy International (KJFK) throughout this guide. Every plate we reference is publicly available and free to view on FlightAware.
Reading the plate is half of it. Our free A320 MCDU Trainer includes SID and STAR scenarios you can work through in your browser — no sim needed.
What Is a SID?
A Standard Instrument Departure (SID) is a pre-defined route that gets you from the runway to the en-route airway system. Instead of ATC having to give you a dozen different vectors and altitude instructions, they just say "cleared DEEZZ SIX departure" and both you and the controller know exactly which path you're taking, what altitudes to hit, and what speeds to maintain.
Think of it as a motorway on-ramp. The runway is the slip road, the SID is the on-ramp, and the airway is the motorway. Without the SID, every aircraft would need individual instructions to merge — which would be chaos at a busy airport like JFK.
In the sim, SIDs are how you get from takeoff to your cruise route. SimBrief usually assigns one automatically when you generate a flight plan. If you're on VATSIM, ATC will give you a SID in your clearance.
Reading a SID Plate: The DEEZZ SIX Departure
Let's break down the DEEZZ SIX DEPARTURE (RNAV) from JFK. This is an RNAV SID, meaning it uses GPS waypoints rather than ground-based VORs. Most modern SIDs are RNAV these days.
The Header
Every plate starts with identifying information. At the top you'll see:
- Procedure name: DEEZZ SIX DEPARTURE (RNAV) — "DEEZZ" is the SID name (based on a waypoint), and the trailing word is the revision number — this is the sixth revision, so "SIX"
- Airport: John F Kennedy Intl (JFK)
- Effective dates: Always check these match the current AIRAC cycle
- "TOP ALTITUDE: 5000" — This is the maximum altitude you should climb to initially unless ATC tells you otherwise
The Plan View
This is the main map showing the route from the airport to the en-route structure.
Here's what you're looking at:
Waypoints are shown as small diamond or star symbols with names in capital letters — DEEZZ, HEERO, SKORR, CESID, TOWIN, YNKEE. These are the GPS fixes your FMC will navigate between.
Course lines show magnetic headings between waypoints. The numbers like 099°, 295°, 183° are the tracks you'll fly between each fix.
Altitude constraints are the numbers above or below waypoint names:
- At SKORR: 2500 means "cross at or above 2,500 feet" (on the chart the number is underlined; in text descriptions you'll sometimes see an asterisk instead, *2500)
- At CESID: 2500 — also "cross at or above 2,500 feet"
- At CESID: 250K — "cross at or below 250 knots"
The compass rose in the upper right (the N arrow) shows magnetic north orientation.
Altitude and Speed Constraints
This is where people get confused. There are several types of constraint you'll see on SID plates:
- Hard altitude (just a number like 11000): Cross at exactly that altitude
- At or above (line under the number, like 2900 with an underline): Cross at or above that altitude. On charts this looks like an underlined number. In text descriptions you'll sometimes see an asterisk (*2900) instead.
- At or below (line over the number): Cross at or below that altitude. The overline acts as a ceiling — don't go higher than this.
- Between (two numbers, one with an overline and one with an underline): Cross between those two altitudes. The top number is the ceiling, the bottom number is the floor.
- Speed (number followed by K, like 210K at SKORR): Maximum speed in knots
On this plate, SKORR shows 210K — meaning you must not exceed 210 knots crossing SKORR — and CESID shows 250K. These per-waypoint speed limits are separate from the regulatory 250-knot limit below 10,000 feet.
The Textual Description
Page 2 of the SID has the narrative — the textual description of what to do for each runway. This is what ATC's clearance is actually based on.
For example, TAKEOFF RUNWAY 4R: "Climb on heading 044° to 520, then climbing right turn heading 099°, thence..." (Runway 4L is similar but routes direct PONAE first before the turn.)
This tells you: after takeoff from runway 4R, fly heading 044° until you reach 520 feet, then turn right to heading 099°. After that, ATC gives you further instructions (radar vectors) to the DEEZZ waypoint.
The common instructions across all runways end with: "expect vectors to DEEZZ, then on track 295° to HEERO. Maintain 5000."
Transitions
At the bottom of the textual page you'll see CANDR TRANSITION (DEEZZ6.CANDR) and TOWIN TRANSITION (DEEZZ6.TOWIN). These are the exit points of the SID. When ATC clears you on the "DEEZZ SIX departure, CANDR transition," you fly the base SID route and then continue to the CANDR waypoint. The transition connects the SID to your en-route airway.
In the FMC, you'll select the SID and then the transition. The whole route gets loaded automatically.
What Is a STAR?
A Standard Terminal Arrival Route (STAR) is the reverse of a SID — it's a pre-defined route that gets you from the en-route airway system to a point near the airport where you can begin an approach. If the SID is the motorway on-ramp, the STAR is the off-ramp.
STARs typically bring you from cruise altitude down to a lower altitude near the airport, with specific crossing restrictions along the way. They're designed to sequence traffic efficiently and keep aircraft separated.
Reading a STAR Plate: The PARCH FOUR Arrival
Let's look at the PARCH FOUR ARRIVAL (RNAV) into JFK. This is a more complex plate than the SID because it has multiple entry points and lots of crossing restrictions.
Entry Transitions
The top of the plate shows multiple transitions — these are the entry points where you join the STAR from the en-route structure. Aircraft coming from different directions enter at different transitions:
You can see waypoints like EBONY, TOPPS, ALLEX, TUSKY, BRADD, KANNI, WHALE, DOVEY stretching across the northeast. These represent aircraft arriving from different directions — some from the west (EBONY, TOPPS), some from the north (BRADD, KANNI), and some from the east (DOVEY, WHALE).
All of these transitions eventually funnel into a common set of waypoints closer to JFK.
Crossing Restrictions on STARs
STARs have more crossing restrictions than SIDs because the controller needs to get lots of aircraft from different altitudes down to a common final approach altitude in an orderly way.
The restrictions work the same way as on SIDs:
- A number by itself is a hard altitude (cross at exactly that)
- Numbers with constraints like "Expect 12000 and 250K" mean you should plan for those values, but ATC may assign different ones
The note "Jet aircraft only" means this STAR is only for jet aircraft — not turboprops or pistons. There's also an "Expect" altitude for vertical navigation planning — "Expect 12000 and 250K" tells your FMS what to plan for the descent, but it's not a hard constraint until ATC confirms it.
Conventional vs RNAV: The CAMRN FIVE Arrival
For comparison, here's the CAMRN FIVE ARRIVAL — a conventional STAR that uses VOR/DME navigation rather than GPS waypoints.
Notice the differences from the RNAV PARCH FOUR:
- VOR symbols (hexagons with dots) instead of GPS waypoint diamonds
- Radials and DME distances instead of direct waypoint-to-waypoint tracks
- Fewer waypoints — conventional STARs are generally simpler because they follow VOR radials
- The routing follows ground-based navaids (SIE, DPK, etc.)
In MSFS, the PMDG 737 and Fenix A320 can both fly conventional and RNAV STARs. SimBrief usually assigns the appropriate type based on the route and aircraft capability. RNAV STARs are more common for modern aircraft because they allow more precise routing and tighter spacing.
Flying SIDs and STARs in the Sim
PMDG 737 / 777 (Boeing FMC)
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Loading the SID: On the DEP/ARR page (DEP ARR button on CDU), select your departure runway. Then select the SID from the list. Then choose a transition if applicable. The FMC loads the entire route.
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Altitude constraints: The FMC automatically builds the altitude constraints from the SID into the VNAV path. You'll see them on the LEGS page — waypoints will show their constraint altitudes. VNAV will manage the climb to hit these constraints.
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Loading the STAR: Same DEP/ARR page, but select the arrival side. Pick the STAR, then the transition, then the approach and its transition. The FMC inserts the whole thing into your route.
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VNAV descent: When flying the STAR, VNAV calculates a Top of Descent (T/D) point and manages the descent to hit all the crossing restrictions. You mostly just monitor. If ATC gives you a different altitude, put it in the MCP altitude window and the FMC will adjust.
Fenix A320 (Airbus MCDU)
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Loading the SID: On the F-PLN page, select the departure. The MCDU shows available SIDs for your runway. Select one, and optionally a transition. It populates your flight plan.
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Managed climb: With the SID loaded, push the ALT knob for managed climb. The A320's flight management guidance computer handles the altitude constraints automaticly. The PFD shows constraint altitudes as magenta triangles on the altitude tape.
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Loading the STAR: From the F-PLN page, select the arrival. Choose your STAR, transition, and approach. The descent path is calculated by the FMGC.
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Managed descent: Push the ALT knob again for managed descent. The aircraft follows the computed descent profile through all the STAR constraints. Speed constraints are handled automatically too — you'll see the managed speed change as you approach each restriction.
Common Mistakes
Not checking the LEGS/F-PLN page after loading. Always scroll through your route after inserting a SID or STAR. Look for discontinuities (gaps in the route), unexpected waypoints, or missing constraints. It takes 30 seconds and saves you from a messy situation later.
Ignoring speed constraints. The 250K below 10,000 feet is regulatory and most people know about it. But SIDs and STARs often have additional speed constraints at specific waypoints. If the plate says 210K at SKORR, your FMC needs to know about it. Usually it does (if you loaded the SID properly), but it's worth verifying.
Accepting "direct to" and skipping the STAR. On VATSIM, controllers sometimes shortcut you — "proceed direct CAMRN." This means you skip the transition and go straight to that fix. Make sure you update your FMC route accordingly, or you'll have waypoints in your plan that you're no longer going to fly over.
Not briefing the plate. In real aviation, pilots brief every plate before they fly it. Take 60 seconds to look at the SID before takeoff: what's the initial heading, what are the key constraints, where does it go? Same for the STAR before starting your descent. You don't need to memorise it, but having a general picture in your head makes everything smoother.
Where to Find These Plates
All FAA plates (covering every US airport) are free and public domain. The best place to view them is FlightAware's IFR Plates section — the URLs are stable and always show the current version.
For VATSIM, ChartFox has worldwide coverage but requires a free VATSIM account.
SimBrief generates route summaries that include SID and STAR names, and if you're using Navigraph, you get the plates directly in your EFB or chart viewer. But nothing beats looking at the actual plate at least once before you fly the procedure for the first time. Now that you know what all those symbols mean, the plate is actually readable — and that's a skill that transfers directly if you ever fly in the real world.
