MCDU Pages Tour
beginnerBefore you can program anything, you need to know where things live. This is a walk round the MCDU with nothing to type.
What this scenario covers
The A320 MCDU is not a menu system. It is a set of named pages, each reached by its own dedicated key on the keypad, and almost every task in the cockpit maps to one of them: INIT for the flight and its cruise level, F-PLN for the route, PERF for the numbers that get you off the ground and back down, RAD NAV for the radios, FUEL PRED for what is left in the tanks, DATA for the navigation database, and the MCDU MENU for everything that is not the flight management computer.
This scenario simply visits each of those pages in turn. No data entry, no validation to fight — the point is that when a later scenario says "go to PERF", you already know which key that is and roughly what you will find when you get there.
How it applies in flight ops
Real crews build this map once and then never think about it again. The reason it matters is speed under load: on a short turnaround, the pilot flying is programming the box while the cabin boards, and hunting for a page costs time that is not there. Airline type ratings teach the panel scan in exactly this order — layout first, data entry second.
It also matters for error catching. If you know that cruise level lives on INIT and nowhere else, an FL that looks wrong on the PROG page tells you immediately which page to go and fix.
Start this scenario
Open the SimTuts A320 MCDU trainer and select “MCDU Pages Tour” from the scenarios list to walk through it step-by-step on the simulated keypad.
Open trainer →Step-by-step: MCDU Pages Tour
- You start on INIT. Navigate to F-PLN to see where the flight plan lives.
F-PLN (Flight Plan) is where you see the actual route — every waypoint, every leg, every constraint. After INIT, this is the page you spend the most time on. The lateral path of the flight is built and edited here.
- Go to the PERF page. PERF holds takeoff and landing performance values.
PERF is split internally — TAKEOFF, CLB, CRZ, DES, APPR, GO-AROUND. The page shifts automatically as the flight progresses. Pre-flight, you only fill in TAKEOFF and APPR; the others fill themselves in flight.
- Go to the RAD NAV page. This is where you tune navigation radios.
RAD NAV holds the two VOR receivers and the two ILS receivers. The FMS auto-tunes both sides during flight, but you can override manually for ATC requests, lost-comm procedures, or to back up the auto-tune on a critical approach.
- Open the PROG page. PROG is the in-flight situational page.
PROG is the "where am I, how am I doing" page in cruise. Live cruise level, recommended max altitude, distance to destination, and predicted fuel/time at destination all appear here. Pilots reference it constantly during long cruise legs.
- Return to the INIT page to complete the tour.
The MCDU has more pages than these five — FUEL PRED, SEC F-PLN, DATA, MCDU MENU, ATC COMM, DIR — but you can fly a complete flight using just the five you have just toured. Master these first; the others are extensions.
What to take away
- Each MCDU page has its own key — there is no back-and-forward menu tree to navigate.
- INIT, F-PLN and PERF carry the great majority of pre-flight work.
- MCDU MENU is the way out to the non-FMS systems, not a home page for the flight plan.
- Learning the layout before the data entry makes every later scenario faster.
The rest of Foundations
INIT Page Basics
beginnerThe INIT page is the first thing you touch on every flight. Six entries, two minutes, and the flight management computer knows what trip it is flying.
📍 KJFK → EGLL⏱ ~2 min📊 6 stepsPerformance Data Entry
intermediateV-speeds, flap setting and a flex temperature for a Madrid departure — the numbers that decide whether the aircraft flies off the runway you have.
📍 LEMD → EGLL⏱ ~3 min📊 8 stepsRadio Navigation Setup
PremiumintermediateTune the VOR and ILS frequencies for the approach into Paris by hand, on the page the FMGS otherwise manages for you.
📍 EGLL → DVR → LFPG⏱ ~3 min📊 6 steps
Background reading
- GuideThe A320 MCDU Explained: Every Page, Simply
What is the A320 MCDU? A plain-English guide to every Airbus MCDU page — INIT, F-PLN, PERF, RAD NAV and more. Practice free in our MCDU trainer.
- GuideMSFS 2024 Autopilot Guide: Every Mode Explained (GA and Airliners)
How to use the MSFS 2024 autopilot — engage it in the Cessna 172, 737 and A320, master HDG, NAV, VNAV and APR, and fix the modes that won't arm.
- GuidePMDG 737 FMC Tutorial: Program Your First Flight Plan Step by Step
Program the PMDG 737 FMC from scratch: IDENT, POS INIT, ROUTE, PERF INIT, takeoff speeds, and VNAV setup. Every CDU page explained with the exact inputs.