Free ATC for MSFS
Free ATC for MSFS 2020 and 2024: the options compared
The short answer: LocalTC is free voice ATC for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and 2024. It's open source, runs on your own PC and works offline. You get controllers from clearance delivery to the gate, an AI copilot, a ground crew you call by voice and a cabin crew, with no subscription and no usage limit. The other voice ATC add-ons are paid.
The ATC add-ons side by side
| Price | You talk by voice | Runs on | Copilot and crew | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LocalTC | Free | Yes | Your PC, offline (a cloud model is optional) | Copilot, ground crew, cabin crew | Open (AGPL) |
| MSFS default ATC | Included | No, menu clicks | The sim | No | Closed |
| BeyondATC | Paid | Yes | Your PC, with online AI features | Some | Closed |
| SayIntentions.AI | Subscription | Yes | Cloud | Copilot and crew | Closed |
| WilcoATC | Paid | Yes | See the developer | See the developer | Closed |
| Pilot2ATC | Paid, one-time | Yes | Your PC | Copilot | Closed |
The other add-ons' prices and features change: check their own sites. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
Is there free ATC for MSFS?
Yes. The sim has its own menu-driven ATC, and LocalTC is a free add-on that replaces it with voice ATC: you press push-to-talk, speak like a real pilot, and controllers answer in real phraseology, check your readbacks and work the traffic around you.
Does it work with MSFS 2024?
Yes, with both MSFS 2020 and MSFS 2024 on Windows, including the MSFS 2024 aircraft's own systems for the copilot.
Do I need an internet connection or an AI subscription?
No. Whisper speech recognition, Piper voices and a local language model (Ollama) run on your PC, so flights work offline. Without a language model at all, LocalTC still understands you with its grammar. If you want sharper wording, you can add your own free key for a cloud model such as Mistral, Groq or Gemini.
What does LocalTC do besides ATC?
An AI first officer on the intercom (callouts, challenge-and-response checklists, its own side of the cockpit), a ground crew for fuel, catering, the GPU, de-icing and the push (with GSX support), a cabin crew, real traffic, a live map, a companion iPhone app, a web tracker and a logbook with replays. The crew speak ten languages besides English.
Why is it free?
It's built in spare time and given away under the GNU AGPL. There's no paid tier and no locked feature. The pricing page says the same thing, at length.