One of the things that makes flight simulation special is the sense of going somewhere — the departure, the cruise, the approach into a new airport. But until now, that experience has been confined to whoever is sitting in the cockpit.

Starting today, simulator flights at XLB Simulations can be followed live on the website. The new live map shows the aircraft position in real time, updated every few seconds directly from the simulator. Visitors can see where the flight is, the speed, altitude, and which phase of flight it's in — from pushback all the way to parking at the gate.

The map also keeps a history of recent flights. Each completed gate-to-gate flight shows up as a line on the map with departure and arrival airports, block time, and flight time. You can click on any past flight to highlight its route.

The position updates come directly from the simulator, so what you see on the map is what's happening in the cockpit — no delay, no manual updates. When the aircraft moves, the map moves.

This is the first step toward making the simulator experience more visible beyond the cockpit. On the pilot side, there are also flight data analysis tools — landing performance reports, approach tracking, and personal flight history — to help pilots review and improve their flying. But for now, the simple pleasure of watching a dot move across a map at 450 knots is surprisingly satisfying.

Not every flight will appear on the map — pilots can choose whether their session is visible to the public, and some prefer to fly privately. But when a flight is shared, you'll be able to follow along from departure to arrival.

Check it out on the live map page.