# SimPlates > Flight simulation companion app with extensive real-world IFR approach charts. (iPhone/iPad app by Dauntless Software.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simplates/id506635223 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Dauntless Software](https://appshunter.io/developer/366840893) - Category: Entertainment, Lifestyle - Price: $49.99 - Rating: 1.30/5 from 6 App Store ratings · 37 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 13.0 · 82 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2012-03-13 - Data updated: 2026-08-27 - Monetization: paid - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simplates/id506635223/reviews.md ## What is SimPlates? SimPlates brings you the world’s largest collection of real-world IFR approach (and other) charts for the serious flight simulation enthusiast to your fingertips! SimPlates is not a flight simulator program in and of itself, but can be used as a companion on your iPhone and/or iPad concurrently with your enjoyment of your preferred computerized desktop flight simulation program to help expand the realism and excitement of the experience. SimPlates has been called "a must have for the serious flight simulator enthusiast" and "a great addition to your flight sim bag" by major flight simulation websites in independent reviews. ++THE VERSION NOW AVAILABLE HERE IS OF THE NEW 'SIMPLATES ULTRA' version which is a great leap forward in terms of plate coverage to the previous generation of SimPlates and has an improved user experience. The app looks and works great! Thank you all for the great feedback and kind words about SimPlates on simulator forums. We're glad you're enjoying the massive number of plates (way more than any other sim product has - including expensive subscription based services) and we continue to update the plate database further with more plates still. Happy simming!+++ The basic way that you use SimPlates is just like pilots from those flying small Cessnas to those flying the largest Boeing and Airbus airliners do every day. As you virtually approach an airport on your computer, bring up its corresponding plates in the SimPlates app. Use the plate as a guide in flying the approach to landing - just like a real world pilot would. SimPlates is useful for virtual pilots of many desktop flight simulation programs, including Flight Simulator (all versions including FSX, FS2004, and MS-Flight), X-Plane, and more. While SimPlates are real-world plates, they are NOT SUITABLE FOR REAL WORLD FLIGHT OPERATIONS and MUST NOT BE USED FOR REAL WORLD FLIGHT OPERATIONS OF ANY SORT, PERIOD. As SimPlates is intended for flight simulation entertainment use, the plates are not kept up to date with real-world aviation changes (worldwide subscriptions for real-world current data cost thousands of dollars per year from other sources). However, for serious flight simulation entertainment use, the massive collection of plates represents incredible value and capability. SimPlates includes over 70,000 real-world IFR plates, including approach plates, SIDs/STARs (Departures/Arrivals), Airport Diagrams, Approach types include ILS, VOR, VOR/DME, NDB, LLZ, SDF, GPS, TACAN, Helicopter and Visual. With so many plates, SimPlates provides very good worldwide coverage. For most countries and major airports of the world, if you are looking for a plates, SimPlates will likely have it. However, the coverage is not universal - please see http://www.dauntless-soft.com/products/simplates/airportlist.asp for the current list of inclusions and coverage notes. While most countries of most interest to simmers are quite up to date, a few are a bit older, such as AU/NZ due to provider issues. Supplemental features include an integrated WORLDWIDE Airport/Facilities directory and a worldwide NAVAID (Navigational Aid) directory. Simplates' friendly interface makes it easy to find exactly the plate or information you are looking for quickly. As the totality of plates exceeds a whopping 100gb, the plates themselves are not included with your initial download from the AppStore. Rather, they are downloaded on demand when you select them in the app – this generally takes only a few moments per plate, but does require you to be online. Any plates you have downloaded into SimPlates remain on your device (unless cleared) so that you can continue to use them even while offline. While this works great - this might mean that OCCASIONALLY the server might be unavailable for short periods. Thank you for checking us out and happy sim flying! ## Key features - World's largest collection of IFR approach charts - Companion app for desktop flight simulators - Enhances realism and excitement - Over 70,000 real-world IFR plates - Includes SIDs/STARs and Airport Diagrams - Supports various approach types (ILS, VOR, GPS, etc.) ## Recent user reviews (10 of 37) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simplates/id506635223/reviews.md ### 3/5 — Sliding in quality *2020-01-15* I’ve noticed some airports are disappearing from this app. Particularly in the Caribbean! Port au Prince now gone in addition to some full countries! ### 3/5 — Was good something happened *2019-06-19* Changes have drastically reduced the availabiity of charts a lot has been removed or changed and updated its all messed up when i first bought the app it was great now something has gone very wrong not happy as i payed alot of money for an app which is now dysfunctional and of no use due to the lack of missing files e.t.c ### 1/5 — Not Worth The Money *2018-12-16* I share the same sentiment that the other reviewer about plates not downloading. I used to use this app all the time but here within the last week everything stopped working. I took a fall giant leap paying for this but now I'm sure it wasn't the best investment. ### 1/5 — No Response *2018-12-15* This program is a serious waste of money. None of the USA plates will download and continues to give errors. I can’t stress enough to not purchase this product. Its plates never get updates and so most of them are useless. I can only give it a 1 star because there is no stars to give it a negative review ### 1/5 — Threw away $30+ bucks *2018-12-10* Unreal.. junk.. will not load charts, send error message every time. Will try to get $ back, Believe all the bad reviews, they are true. ### 5/5 — Must have to fly real procedures on Flight Simulator *2017-04-06* I bought this app and I am fascinated with the coverage, which is basically worldwide for instrument appraoch charts, Standard Instrument Departure Charts, Standar Instrument Arrival Chart, Aerodrome Charts, Visual Approach Charts and everything else ! If you want to fly like real pilots do on Flight Simulator or X Plane you should acquire this app. Makes flying so much easier with quick reference on your iPad or Phone. ### 5/5 — Typical Dauntless = PERFECT *2016-12-09* I have been using this line of SimPlates but on my PC for ages, they are EXACTLY what a serious Flight Simmer wants. At last I have the full working version on my iPad and it's much better to use In Flight, rather than use my second screen which is usually full of gauges and FSPassenger reports etc. Now I am able to just prop my iPad up with all the plates ready to use as and when required, as landing for me is the hardest part because I also run FSPassengers, who will literally scream if they don't like your landing, cheer and clap if they do. The whole point being, this is great for those busy and potentially dangerous parts of your Flight, when it can all go wrong. Great work folks, haven't had a single problem with it. Definitely worth the wait. ### 1/5 — The idea is great, the product is not. *2015-11-24* In this day in age, pretty much every single plate for every airport in the world is available online for free. I was looking for an app that was a one stop shop to prevent me from having to go to a bunch of websites to get the required charts that I need. I guess I was expecting too much from a $40 app. This is where there should be a try before you buy feature. I read about the app before purchasing so I was expecting some of the charts to be dated (for countries that don's have the charts published online for free) but at least somewhat usable. I could never use this for flying online on VATSIM outside of the USA. For example, some of the Canadian Charts are from 2004. These charts have been available online for free for YEARS! All the SID/STAR in CYYZ went to all RNAV a few years ago. None of those are there, just the old procedures from 2010. There is no excuse for the links to these charts not being updated, especially for an app as expensive as this. The only charts that are current are the USA ones. There is an app for $2.99 on the app store that I previously used for that and is much better. There is no multiple tab option in the app so I have to back out of a chart to bring up the next one. This makes it a real pain for transitioning from a STAR to an Approach. Searching for a chart throuh the app is painfully slow even if you already have the chart downloaded. Save your money. I'd delete this app off my ipad if it was free. ### 5/5 — Simplates *2015-06-12* Been using this for a very long time now wouldn't be without it. A must for any serious simmer. Many thanks for speedily fixing the USA problem. ### 3/5 — No U.S. Plates *2015-06-03* This app works well with available countries plates. However, the U.S. plates do not download. A great disappointment. ## Frequently asked questions about SimPlates ### What is SimPlates? SimPlates is a companion application for flight simulation enthusiasts. It provides a massive collection of real-world IFR approach and other aviation charts that can be used alongside your desktop flight simulator to increase the realism of your virtual flying experience. ### What kind of charts does SimPlates offer? SimPlates offers over 70,000 real-world IFR plates, including approach plates, SIDs/STARs (Departures/Arrivals), and Airport Diagrams. It supports a wide variety of approach types such as ILS, VOR, NDB, GPS, and more. ### Is SimPlates suitable for real-world flight? No, SimPlates are real-world charts but are NOT suitable for real-world flight operations. They are intended solely for flight simulation entertainment purposes and are not kept up-to-date with current aviation changes, unlike subscription services for actual flight. ### Which flight simulators are compatible with SimPlates? SimPlates is designed to be used with many popular desktop flight simulation programs. This includes Flight Simulator (all versions like FSX, FS2004, MS-Flight) and X-Plane, among others. ### How is SimPlates Ultra different from previous versions? The current version available is SimPlates Ultra, which represents a significant advancement over previous generations. It offers greatly expanded plate coverage and an improved user experience, with a continuously updated database of charts. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 12.2.7 — 2025-04-03 Thank you for making SimPlates the serious and smart pilot's choice for realistic flight simulator and flight simulation! This new version updates the extensive airport and approach database, tweaks the UI, and adds the ability to print out plates directly from the app if you have a compatible printer installed. ### 12.2.5 — 2021-02-09 Thank you for making SimPlates the serious and smart pilot's choice for realistic flight simulator and flight simulation! This new version updates the extensive airport and approach database, tweaks the UI, and adds the ability to print out plates directly from the app if you have a compatible printer installed. ### 12.2.2 — 2019-03-20 Thank you for making SimPlates the go-to choice for serious sim pilots. This update fixes an issue where USA plates were not downloading due to changes at the FAA servers. Additionally, the main database has been updated with plenty of new plates worldwide. Happy simming! ### 12.2.1 — 2018-12-18 Thank you for making SimPlates the go-to choice for serious sim pilots. This update fixes an issue where USA plates were not downloading due to changes at the FAA servers. Additionally, the main database has been updated with plenty of new plates worldwide. Happy simming! ### 12.1.9 — 2015-06-12 Updated plates. More new plates than ever before, including adding support for a few new countries and territories. Fixed some bugs that affected USA plates. Improved UI and user experience. 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User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-27.*