It's a fair question, and I don't actually think it has anything to do with AI.

+x

 

Tim Dawson - 6/3/2026 9:06:04 AM

If an AI plans your flight for you, have you planned your flight?

Hi Tim and SkyDemon team,

Thank you for your reply.
I fully understand and respect SkyDemon’s philosophy that the pilot must always remain in command. However, I believe there is a meaningful difference between “the AI plans the flight for you” and a smart optional route suggestion tool.
For example, SkyDemon already allows pilots to define their personal minimums for VFR flights. Yet the final go/no-go decision remains 100% with the pilot. An intelligent autorouter could work in the same spirit: it would suggest a safe and efficient initial route (considering airspace, terrain, weather, etc.), but the pilot would still review it, adjust it, and take full responsibility — just like with personal minimums.
Your reply reminds me a bit of older pilots who used to say “I don’t need any electronic aids, I just look out the window.” While that worked in simpler times, today’s complex European airspace with its many restricted zones, TMZs, and low-level constraints makes good planning tools more important than ever — not less.
I’m not asking for a “press one button and go” solution. I’m asking for a helpful assistant that generates a solid starting proposal which I can then refine and own completely. Many pilots (especially those coming from EasyVFR or AirNav Pro) would really appreciate this.
Would the team be open to reconsidering such a feature in the future?
Thank you again for the great product and for taking the time to answer.

If an AI plans your flight for you, have you planned your flight?

I am unsure how much I would benefit from this. My process for XC is to learn about the airspace, through the manual process and identifying different routes, alternatives etc. The time spent here might be optimized to get a result faster, but I'm actually more interested in the situational awareness it brings, than just having a route served. I have experimented with Autorouter in this process, and while I understand the benefits for IFR, I have not found it very usefull for VFR.

Every pilot have their own process, this is just my 50c.

Hi Team,
First of all, thank you for continuing to develop what I (and many others) believe is still the best VFR moving map and planning tool in Europe. The clarity of the vector charts, the excellent airspace depiction, and the overall ease of use in the cockpit are second to none.
I recently noticed that Air Navigation Pro has introduced an AI Auto VFR Route Planner. It automatically suggests optimized routes based on departure time, weather, airspace, terrain, and other factors. While I’m very happy with SkyDemon’s current planning tools, I think a smart, optional AI route suggestion feature would be a fantastic addition.

Why I think it would be useful:

Quickly generate good initial route ideas for longer cross-country flights
Help evaluate multiple options around complex airspace (especially in central Europe)
Save time during pre-flight planning without removing pilot control
Still allow easy manual adjustment of any suggested route (rubber-banding etc.)

It would be great if it could be implemented as an optional tool (so the current manual workflow stays untouched for those who prefer it).
I’m sure many pilots who fly longer VFR trips would really appreciate this. Would the development team consider something like this in a future update?

Happy to provide more details or examples if helpful.
Thanks again for the great product!