SimBrief Not Working in MSFS 2024? Every Fix for Missing Routes and Broken Imports

You generated a perfect OFP in SimBrief, hit Import in the MSFS 2024 EFB, and... nothing. Or worse - only your departure and arrival airports loaded, with a beautiful direct magenta line straight through three FIRs.

This is one of the most reported issues since the MSFS 2024 EFB picked up SimBrief integration in late 2024. The good news: almost every failure mode falls into one of five buckets, and the fixes are well documented. This guide walks through each symptom, the actual root cause, and the exact steps to recover.

If you've never set up the SimBrief → EFB workflow before, start with the companion guide How to Import SimBrief into MSFS 2024 - FMC Setup Guide first. This page assumes you've got it working at least once.

How is SimBrief import supposed to work in MSFS 2024?

On PC, SimBrief Dispatch is a free Navigraph add-on that runs as an app inside the in-game EFB (tablet). It does not come with the sim: you install the SimBrief EFB App from Navigraph Hub or from Software Downloads on the SimBrief dashboard. You don't need a separate browser tab, and the SimBrief part of the workflow is free. A Navigraph subscription only matters if you want SimBrief to plan on the current AIRAC cycle instead of the older one free accounts get.

The normal flow is:

1. Open EFB (TAB (default keybind) or toolbar icon).
2. Open the SimBrief Dispatch app.
3. Sign in with the Navigraph account your SimBrief account is linked to.
4. Generate or select an OFP.
5. Press Import Route. Dispatch hands the route to the default EFB flight planner.
6. On the planner's Route page, open the SEND menu and pick Send To Avionics (or Send To Avionics And ATC to file it with the sim's ATC at the same time). Many add-on airliners skip this step and use their own request instead (INIT REQUEST on an Airbus, a route request on the RTE page of a PMDG Boeing).

If your account is linked to Navigraph, you don't have to type your Pilot ID anywhere in the default EFB. Third-party aircraft are a different story - most of them keep their own SimBrief Username field inside their own EFB, and that's where the majority of "Import does nothing" problems start.

Why does the SimBrief Import button do nothing?

You press Import. No spinner, no error, no plan. Or you get a "SimBrief Plan Requested" message that never resolves.

Most common causes:

• Account not linked. Either your SimBrief Pilot ID/Username isn't entered in the third-party aircraft's EFB, or your SimBrief account isn't linked to your Navigraph account in the default EFB flow.
• Wrong field used. Several aircraft (PMDG especially) want your SimBrief Username, not the numeric Pilot ID. Other aircraft want the opposite: Navigraph's own Fenix FAQ fills the Fenix's SimBrief field with the Pilot ID. Read the aircraft's own docs.
• No OFP generated yet. You opened an old saved plan but never pressed "Generate OFP" for this session. The import endpoint pulls the latest generated plan, not a draft.
• Expired/stale session. Log out and back into SimBrief.
• Sim Update broke the SDK. Sim Updates occasionally break the EFB's SimBrief integration by changing the underlying SDK APIs. When this happens, Navigraph typically ships a patched SimBrief EFB App within days - update it via the Navigraph Hub. Always check the Hub for a SimBrief EFB App update after every MSFS patch.

Fix sequence:

1. Open Navigraph Hub, update the SimBrief EFB App and any Navigraph addons.
2. Restart your PC (not just the sim).
3. In SimBrief Dispatch, generate a brand-new OFP.
4. In the EFB, make sure your account is linked / the right ID is entered.
5. Try Import again.

Why are waypoints missing after importing from SimBrief?

The classic failure: departure and arrival sit on the map, and there's a single straight line between them. None of the intermediate fixes from your SimBrief plan are there.

This was widely reported on the default G3000 (Cirrus Vision Jet et al.) and on various tubeliners. The root cause is a mismatch between what SimBrief planned and what the sim's nav database can resolve at import time:

• AIRAC mismatch. SimBrief generated the plan against AIRAC cycle X; your sim is on cycle Y. Navigraph's staff explain that the import falls back to coordinates when it cannot find a waypoint in your nav database, so fixes renamed or removed between cycles turn into lat/long points or drop out.
• Provider mismatch. The same fallback happens when SimBrief planned on Navigraph data but the sim is flying on its default nav data, or the other way round.
• Nav data package not loading in the right order. MSFS 2024 sorts packages by a priority attribute the package itself declares (added in Sim Update 3), not by a simple list in the Content Manager. A developer mode reorder tool exists, but Navigraph treats it as an advanced-user option. Navigraph users have reported that pressing update on the navdata in the Hub can leave the order wrong and SIDs/STARs missing, while removing the package and installing it again fixes it.
• An outdated SimBrief EFB App. Several "only DEP and ARR load" waves in 2025 were fixed by new SimBrief EFB App releases, and one by Sim Update 2's better handling of packages.

Fix sequence:

1. Open Navigraph Hub and update the SimBrief EFB App.
2. Make sure the SimBrief OFP you generated uses the same AIRAC cycle and data provider your sim has installed.
3. If issues persist, remove the Navigraph navdata package in the Hub and install it again, rather than pressing update.
4. Generate a fresh OFP and import. Verify waypoint count matches your OFP before you start taxiing.

If a specific waypoint still won't resolve, edit the SimBrief route string and replace it with the nearest valid airway entry - then re-import.

Why is the SimBrief plan in the EFB but the FMC is empty?

The route is visible on the EFB map. The FMC is empty. This is almost never an EFB bug - it's an aircraft-specific loader step you haven't done yet. Every serious add-on aircraft has its own flight plan loader, and the EFB plan is the source, not the destination.

PMDG 737/777 (MSFS 2024)

PMDG's tablet pulls SimBrief independently of the default EFB. You need to:

1. Generate the OFP in SimBrief with Detailed Navlog enabled.
2. In the PMDG EFB → General Preferences, enter your SimBrief Alias (this is your SimBrief username - the alphanumeric name, not the 6-7 digit Pilot ID).
3. On the EFB home screen, press "Request New Data from SimBrief".
4. At the FMC, RTE page → enter ICAOICAO in the CO ROUTE field → press REQUEST → select the SimBrief route file (should be green) → ACTIVATE → EXEC.

If the route shows up red instead of green in the FMC's SimBrief loader, your OFP doesn't have Detailed Navlog enabled. Regenerate the OFP with that option ticked. For more on PMDG FMC programming see PMDG 737 FMC Tutorial.

Fenix A320

Fenix has its own SimBrief integration in its EFB, separate from the default MSFS one. Workflow:

1. Open the Fenix EFB → Settings → fill in the SimBrief field (Navigraph's Fenix FAQ enters the SimBrief Pilot ID in the field labelled SIMBRIEF USERNAME).
2. Update your nav data through Navigraph Hub first, so the Fenix and SimBrief are on the same AIRAC cycle.
3. Generate the OFP in SimBrief.
4. In the Fenix EFB app, tap to import from SimBrief, then load the aircraft from the Mass and balance tab. This brings over fuel and payload, not the route.
5. On the MCDU, INIT page → INIT REQUEST. This is what uplinks the route into the flight plan.

There's a deeper walkthrough in iniBuilds A320 V2 Tutorial - the workflow is conceptually identical between Bus add-ons.

Default aircraft (G3000-equipped Vision Jet, default 787, etc.)

These take the route from the EFB's own flight planner. Pressing Import Route in SimBrief Dispatch only fills the planner; the avionics stay empty until you open the planner's Route page, open the SEND menu and choose Send To Avionics (or Send To Avionics And ATC). If the route arrives incomplete, check you are on the current sim version: Sim Update 6 (1.8.14.0) fixed several cases where a plan sent from the EFB reached the Pro Line 21 avionics as an incomplete route.

Airbus add-ons that use INIT REQUEST

FlyByWire's documentation warns not to pick an arrival airport on the MSFS World Map or flight planner when you plan to import from SimBrief. Doing so fills the FROM/TO field when the flight loads and removes the INIT REQUEST option from the INIT A page. When you intend to use INIT REQUEST, leave the destination blank before you spawn.

If you're new to FMC programming generally, the FMC Programming Guide covers the universal workflow.

Did a Sim Update break SimBrief?

This is a recurring regression pattern, not a single bug. Every few months a Sim Update changes something about how third-party packages register with the simulator, and the SimBrief EFB App breaks until Navigraph ships a patch. Subsequent Sim Updates and Navigraph patches have generally resolved these regressions, though they can recur with any new MSFS release.

Where to check before assuming it's your install:

• Microsoft's MSFS 2024 release notes page (search "Sim Update" + the current version number)
• The Navigraph forum's "Dispatch for MSFS" category - known regressions are usually acknowledged quickly
• The MSFS forums "Tools & Utilities" category

If a Sim Update just dropped and your import has broken in lockstep, hold off on cache wipes and reinstalls. Give Navigraph a few days to publish a patched SimBrief EFB App version in the Hub. When Sim Update 1.2.7.0 broke the Import button in December 2024, Navigraph's staff confirmed the sim had made breaking changes and shipped an updated app the next day.

What if SimBrief import keeps failing - is there an alternative?

If the EFB SimBrief import keeps failing and you need to fly tonight, the Navigraph Charts in-sim app (separate from SimBrief Dispatch but in the same EFB) is your fallback. You can:

• View the charts for your generated SimBrief route.
• Read off the route string and type it into the MCDU/FMC manually.
• Use Charts' moving map feature (with Navigraph Simlink running on PC) to track your position on approach plates without depending on the SimBrief loader at all.

Unlike SimBrief Dispatch, Charts requires a paid Navigraph subscription.

How do I enter the flight plan manually if nothing imports?

If nothing imports cleanly, you can always fall back to typing. SimBrief's OFP shows a route string near the top, laid out as origin, departure, a chain of fixes joined by airways, arrival and destination. On any Boeing FMC or Airbus MCDU you can enter:

1. Origin and destination on INIT/RTE page.
2. SID on the departure page.
3. The airway/waypoint sequence on the route page.
4. STAR and approach on the arrival page.

It takes a few minutes for a normal short-haul route, and it works regardless of whether SimBrief, the EFB, or Navigraph is broken. The full step-by-step is in the SimBrief to FMC Workflow guide.

Typing a route is only slow while the key sequence is unfamiliar, and that part does not need the sim running at all. Our free browser trainers drill exactly these four steps: ROUTE Page Basics on the 737 CDU, or INIT Page Basics followed by AIRWAYS Entry & the "NOT IN DATABASE" Fix on the A320 MCDU - the airway one being the step that most often stops a hand-typed route dead.

Quick-fix table

Symptom	Most likely cause	First fix to try
Import button does nothing	SimBrief EFB App outdated after Sim Update	Update via Navigraph Hub, restart PC
"SimBrief Plan Requested" hangs forever	Account not linked, or stale OFP	Re-link account, generate fresh OFP
Only DEP and ARR load, no waypoints	Outdated SimBrief EFB App; navdata package order; AIRAC mismatch	Update the app, remove and reinstall Navigraph navdata via Hub, match AIRAC cycles, retry
Some waypoints show as lat/long points or are missing	AIRAC cycle or data provider mismatch between SimBrief and sim	Match cycles and provider, regenerate OFP
Plan in EFB but avionics empty (default aircraft)	Route never sent from the planner	Route page → SEND → Send To Avionics
Plan in EFB but FMC empty (PMDG)	Detailed Navlog disabled, or wrong ID field	Enable Detailed Navlog, use Username not Pilot ID
Plan in EFB but MCDU empty (Fenix)	INIT REQUEST not pressed	MCDU INIT page → INIT REQUEST
No INIT REQUEST option (Airbus add-ons)	Destination set in World Map before flight	Leave the World Map destination blank; load via SimBrief
Cruise altitude wrong after import	A SimBrief EFB App bug (a direct flight imported a garbage altitude in early 2025; Navigraph fixed it)	Update the SimBrief EFB App via Navigraph Hub
Crashes on import	Outdated or damaged SimBrief EFB App, or a damaged sim install	Update or reinstall the app via Hub; if it persists, full sim reinstall + delete local cache folder (platform path)
Nothing works after multiple attempts	Corrupted local install	Reinstall MSFS + wipe local cache folder (platform path)

Bottom line

The MSFS 2024 EFB SimBrief integration is a genuinely useful feature when it works, and it works most of the time. When it breaks, it almost always breaks for one of the same five reasons: a Sim Update changed the API, the nav data doesn't match or isn't loading correctly, account/ID isn't entered correctly, the route never left the EFB (no Send To Avionics, or an aircraft loader you haven't pressed yet), or a World Map destination took away an Airbus add-on's INIT REQUEST.

Walk the checklist at the top of this page in order before you reach for a reinstall. And after every MSFS Sim Update, get into the habit of opening Navigraph Hub first to pull whatever patched the SimBrief EFB App needs - that one habit prevents most of the misery.