1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type and manufacturer. Optionally set a Default Callsign Number — every SimBrief dispatch then gets a callsign automatically.
2. Departure — Find departure airports ranked by VATSIM ATC coverage (score 0–5) in your time window. The mini timeline shows grey ATC slots within your search window. Click Select on a result — this sets it as your origin and jumps to the Arrival tab. Use the Code field to check one specific airport — it is shown even if it is outside the ranking; clear the field to get the full list back.
3. Liveries — Switch to the Liveries tab: liveries are filtered to the origin airport's country (use + Airlines to pull in a specific airline instead). Click a livery to expand it, then click ✈ Use for Flight to push airline, ICAO code, registration and aircraft type straight into Flight Setup (Aircraft tab).
4. Arrival — Find the best destination by ATC coverage (score 0–4) in its own arrival window. Distance range and flight phases from Aircraft are used automatically. Checked flight phases define your ATC coverage window — e.g. with Taxi In + Shutdown checked, the system verifies coverage from touchdown to the gate: TWR and GND — or, where unstaffed, the next-higher position (e.g. CTR) covering them top-down. Each card has a mini timeline: grey bars = ATC slots, outlined frame = your coverage window — bars inside the frame are your ATC coverage; hover for details.
5. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on a destination card to open the Route tab, then SimBrief ↗ there. Origin, destination, aircraft, airline, callsign and all enabled parameters are assembled into one URL. Done.

Every Select button throughout the app updates the central airport — the tabs that follow it pick it up the next time you open them.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type — it sets distance range, flight times and coverage windows.
2. Arrival → Route Explorer — Open the Arrival tab, switch to Route Explorer mode (amber) and enter your planned landing date and time window — when do you want to arrive? Click Explore to search.
3. Compare destinations — Results are cards with a weighted ATC score badge (0–4 on arrival, higher = better), a controller count and position pills (CTR, APP, TWR, GND); the Slots card lists slot times and coverage %. Pills: blue = booked, green/amber/orange = online (color and number are the same measured probability that the position is still staffed at your arrival time, given how long the controller has been on — ), hollow = no local controller — the position above covers it top-down and counts half; a dashed border means the position comes from an event announcement and still counts filled, with its exact weight in the tooltip. The mini timeline shows grey bars (ATC slots) inside an outlined frame (your arrival window) — bars inside the frame are your covered arrival time.
4. Pick an Origin — Below each destination, suggested origin airports appear as badges, each with its own departure window (the arrival window minus that origin's flight time), weighted score (0–5), distance, flight time, coverage % and ATC slot range; greyed-out ⏱ Window passed = too late for that origin. Click a badge: it becomes your departure airport, the Departure tab takes over that window as its Ready at time (the gate time that leads to those takeoffs, so it reads earlier by your ticked departure phases), and the view switches to Destinations mode.
5. Review Destinations — You're now in Destinations mode (blue) with your origin set; the arrival window is synced from your Ready at time + your ticked departure phases + flight time (🔒 = locked to departure), so it lands on touchdown times. Your Route Explorer destination should appear here with full timing details.
6. Liveries (optional) — Switch to the Liveries tab to browse liveries for your origin's country. Click ✈ Use for Flight on a livery to push airline, ICAO code and registration into Flight Setup.
7. Route (recommended) — Click 🧭 Route on the destination card to see the CTR sectors along the way, when each is staffed, and how long the controller has been on.
8. SimBrief — In the Route tab, click SimBrief ↗ — everything is pre-filled. Done.

Tip: Switching modes keeps both time windows; it clears the Code field and the current result list. Click Route Explorer in the mode switch to go back — your original arrival times are restored automatically.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type — it sets distance range, flight times and coverage windows.
2. Events — Open the Events tab and pick a date; the list loads by itself, there is no search button (↻ Refresh only re-fetches the same date). On a busy day, type a code into the ICAO filter to keep just your corner of the world — it matches the start of the code, so ED leaves every German airport standing. Before planning, open the event link and read the briefing — some events require bookings or fixed routes. Each event card shows airports with two small plane icons per airport badge (hover for the label):

3. Choose your route — Both icons land you in the Arrival tab with the event hour pre-filled. Compare cards by score badge, controller count and position pills (CTR, APP, TWR, GND); a 🎉 badge means that airport hosts an event too. The mini timeline shows ATC slots (grey) against your time window (outlined frame). If you used the landing icon and picked an origin, you're now in Destinations mode with full timing details.
4. Liveries (optional) — Switch to the Liveries tab to find a matching livery for your origin's country. Click ✈ Use for Flight to push airline and registration into Flight Setup.
5. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on your destination card, then SimBrief ↗ in the Route tab. Everything is pre-filled. Done.

Tip: Use Depart from here when you know where you want to depart from. Use Arrive here when you want to land at the event and need to find the best origin.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type — it sets distance range, flight times and coverage windows.
2. Map — Open the Map tab and set your time window. Markers appear for airports with enough ATC coverage in the window, color-coded by weighted ATC score (0–5) — the legend below the map explains the colors.
3. Filter & browse — Use the score filter for a minimum weighted score — that is the best moment in the window, not how much of it is covered; marker size carries the latter — and the Ground Traffic filter (≥5 / ≥15) for busy fields only. Switch on the sector overlay (top right) to see CTR — and optionally APP/DEP — airspace at the flight level you set there; click inside a sector for its controllers. Click a marker for the popup: weighted score, coverage time and %, slot times, live ground traffic (✈), ATIS and event badges.
4. Select — Found an interesting airport? Click Select in the marker popup. This sets it as your origin — every tab works from it once you open it.
5. Arrival — Switch to the Arrival tab (Destinations mode). The map airport is now your origin — find destinations that have ATC when you land there.
6. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on a destination card, then SimBrief ↗ in the Route tab. Done.

Tip: Great for discovering airports you've never flown to. The map shows the full ATC picture at a glance — no need to check individual airports one by one.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type and manufacturer.
2. Liveries — Open the Liveries tab. Liveries load by the currently selected airport's country. Use + Airports to add more countries (e.g. KJFK for US airlines, RJTT for Japanese airlines) — or + Airlines to pull one airline's liveries regardless of country (e.g. DLH, TAP).
3. Pick a livery — Browse and filter by airline, type, or engine variant. Click a livery card to expand it, then click ✈ Use for Flight — this pushes airline name, ICAO code, registration and the matching aircraft type into Flight Setup (Aircraft tab). No manual typing needed.
4. Find a hub — Your livery's airline has a home base. Type its ICAO into the airport search bar at the top (e.g. EDDF for Lufthansa) to set it as your origin — or browse the Map tab for a well-staffed airport in the airline's region.
5. Arrival — Switch to the Arrival tab (Destinations mode). Find a destination that matches the airline's real-world route network — or go anywhere with good ATC coverage.
6. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on your destination card, then SimBrief ↗ in the Route tab. Airline, ICAO code and registration from your livery are already in Flight Setup — add your flight number there (Aircraft tab), and everything goes into the dispatch URL. Done.

Tip: Perfect when you've just downloaded a new livery pack and want to take it for a spin on a realistic route with ATC. Works in reverse too: Real airlines in the Route tab shows who is scheduled to fly a route in the coming weeks, flagging airlines you have a livery for.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type — it sets distance range, flight times and coverage windows.
2. Search your airport — In the airport search bar at the top, enter the ICAO of the airport you want to fly from (e.g. your home base) and select it.
3. ATC tab — Open the ATC tab. The 7-day overview shows a tile per day with the weighted score badge (0–5, one decimal), controller count and a 🎉 marker on event days; shift the window with the From (UTC) date above the day tiles. Click the day with the best score.
4. Find the best slot — Study that day's timeline: one row per position (CTR, DEP, APP, TWR, GND, DEL), colored by source — blue = booked, green/amber/orange = online (probability of still being staffed, in steps), hollow = top-down (counts half), a dashed border = taken from an event announcement (drawn filled, weight in the tooltip). The Slots list below gives each slot its weighted score; look for the day's highest stretches — 3+ already means several positions staffed. Booked slots keep full value; an online position counts the measured probability that it is still staffed at the assessed time given how long the controller has already been on — usually less the longer that is; hover an online bar for online since 1h 20m (the color is that same probability in steps: ; a handover starts a new session, so the clock starts again). The controller list at the bottom shows who's on duty and when. Note the start and end of the best stretch — you'll use it in the next step.
5. Set the time window — Go to the Departure tab and enter the time window you found in the ATC timeline. If your airport is outside the worldwide top ranking, put its code in the Code field to pin it — the ranking also shows where ATC is even better at that hour.
6. Arrival — Switch to the Arrival tab (Destinations mode). The arrival window is synced automatically from your Ready at time + your ticked departure phases + flight time (🔒), so it lands on touchdown times. Find destinations with ATC coverage during your arrival.
7. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on your chosen destination, then SimBrief ↗ in the Route tab. Done.

Tip: No bookings yet? The 📊 How Long Staffed and 📅 Spontaneous Staffing panels show how long positions typically stay manned and at which times of day this airport usually gets spontaneous ATC. Bookings show intent, not a guarantee — re-check before departure.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type so flight phase times, speeds, and ATC coverage windows are set.
2. Departure → Optimal Routes — Switch to the Optimal Routes mode (green) and fill in what you want searched: departure date and time, the maximum delay you'll accept, a flight duration range (H:MM) — converted into a distance range using your aircraft's speeds — and how many origins to search (Count). These are search parameters: nothing happens here until you press the button.
3. Find Routes — Click Find Routes. The system searches the top origins with ATC, finds the best destination for each, and shifts departure in 15-minute steps, keeping the shift with the best combined score — the coverage filter is a floor each candidate has to clear, not the thing being maximized. Results are ranked by Combined Score (origin 0–5 + destination 0–4 = 0–9); high single digits are exceptional.
4. Narrow it down — The filter row below works the other way round: Coverage (100 % / ≥ 75 % / ≥ 50 %), APP/DEP only, 3rd-party scenery and incl. events 🎉 each reload the list the moment you click them — no button. Go back to a search field instead and a green ↻ Search parameters changed marker appears under the result count until you press Find Routes again.
5. Pick a route — Each card shows origin and destination (click an ICAO chip to select that airport), distance and flight time, departure/arrival times with the applied delay, ATC coverage at both ends, ATIS and scenery badges, and live ground traffic at the origin (✈). The mini timeline shows grey (ATC slots) and blue (your departure/arrival window) — where they overlap, you have ATC coverage.
6. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on your chosen route, then SimBrief ↗ in the Route tab. Origin, destination, times — everything is pre-filled. Done.

Tip: This is the fastest way to find a complete route with maximum ATC. No need to pick origin and destination separately — the system does it for you. Remember the rule for the whole mode: filters act at once, the search you start.

1. Aircraft — Pick your aircraft type — it sets distance range, flight times and coverage windows.
2. Departure — Open the Departure tab and set a time window around now. Look for airports that have both a high ATC score and pilots on the ground (✈ count marked (Ground) in the ATC coverage card). More pilots = more traffic on frequency, more realistic experience. The mini timeline shows grey ATC slots within your search window.
3. Map — Alternatively, open the Map and browse visually. Use the Ground Traffic filter below the map (≥5 or ≥15) to show only busy airports. Click markers to check the popup — the ✈ count next to the ICAO code shows pilots sitting on the ground with a flight plan filed from that airport — your departure queue. A live ATIS badge is another strong traffic signal.
4. Select — Click Select on a busy airport with good ATC coverage. This sets it as your origin.
5. Arrival — Switch to the Arrival tab (Destinations mode). Find a destination with ATC coverage.
6. Route → SimBrief — Click 🧭 Route on your destination card, then SimBrief ↗ in the Route tab. Depart from a busy hub, arrive at another active airport — maximum immersion. Done.

Tip: Ground traffic comes from a VATSIM snapshot updated every few minutes — re-run the search or reload the map for fresh numbers.

1. Route — Open the Route tab via 🧭 Route on any result card — or type two ICAO codes directly and set your planned departure date and time (UTC).
2. Flight profile — Read distance, flight time and the climb–cruise–descent profile; TOC/TOD markers (top of climb / descent) show where climb ends and descent begins. Adjust the cruise level with the FL slider next to the profile — the sectors reload for that altitude.
3. Enroute coverage — The sector band below the profile shows every CTR along the way, colored by status. Hover a segment for frequency, transit times and — when online — online since 1h 20m: how long that controller has been on.
4. Shift departure — Move the departure offset slider (up to 3 h earlier or later) and watch sector staffing and ETAs change.
5. Weather — Check METAR/TAF for both endpoints at the planned times: wind against the favoured runway, visibility, ceiling, ATIS.
6. SimBrief — Click SimBrief ↗ — the shifted departure time goes into the plan. Done.
7. In the air (optional) — FollowATC opens a small monitoring window that keeps answering the same question once you are flying: who is working you now, and who takes you next. Your callsign travels with it — from the OFP if you fetched a SimBrief route, otherwise airline + flight number from the Aircraft tab — so it starts monitoring right away. Park it next to your pilot client; clicking again focuses the window instead of opening another.

Tip: A perfect departure score means little if the enroute sectors are empty and the arrival weather is too poor to land — this is the two-minute check before every dispatch.

1. Route — Open the Route tab for your origin and destination.
2. Real airlines — Click Real airlines to see who is scheduled to fly this route over the next 7, 14 or 30 days: airlines, how many departures are planned, aircraft types, the weekdays they run, and the next departure. It reads the timetable ahead, not a log of past flights — which is why the weekdays are worth a look before you pick a departure time. Opening a route costs nothing if someone looked it up recently; only a fresh lookup needs your own AeroAPI key. A cached answer keeps the window it was fetched with, so it can reach slightly into the past.
3. Match a livery — Each airline chip carries a badge: ✓ matching livery installed, ⚠ only for other aircraft types, – none. Click a chip to jump into the Liveries tab pre-filtered, then ✈ Use for Flight.
4. Compare routes (optional) — Get SimBrief route (enter your SimBrief username next to it) loads your latest matching SimBrief plan and adds a second sector band below the direct one, so you can compare the two tracks side by side rather than replacing one with the other. FlightAware ↗ shows the route's real flights live.
5. SimBrief — Click SimBrief ↗ when route, livery and timing look right. Done.

Tip: The realism upgrade — fly a route that exists, in a livery that flies it, on a weekday it actually operates.