DOORS, SLIDES AND CABIN READY: THREE DIFFERENT CONFIRMATIONS
A closed passenger door, an armed escape slide and a ready cabin describe different things. Door closure tells you the door's state. Arming prepares the associated escape slide for emergency deployment. Cabin Ready concerns completion of the cabin preparation and checks. Closing a door does not by itself finish that work, and hearing a readiness report does not replace reading the door indications. Keep the three confirmations separate as boarding ends and the aircraft is prepared to leave. The cockpit and cabin are working towards the same departure through different tasks. [40, PDF pp. 2–5] [11, CIDS and Flight Attendant Panel chapters]
The FAP, or Flight Attendant Panel, provides supported cabin information and controls. Fenix V3's Virtual Purser carries out supported crew tasks and communication, including announcements, door and slide handling, cabin checks and Cabin Ready. A purser is a senior cabin-crew role; in the simulator, this feature represents that part of the workflow. Give its sequence time to progress. Different cabin checks can take different amounts of time, so a guessed delay is not proof that the work has finished. Follow the actual progress and completion through the configured workflow. [41, Virtual Purser / VP Behaviour]
Coordinate the supported services and cabin actions, then compare the crew report with the relevant FAP and ECAM door information. A change after readiness, such as reopening a door or renewing a service, deserves another look at the affected state. The final before-takeoff confirmation must belong to the aircraft as it is now. Cockpit preparation can continue while suitable cabin tasks are taking place, but the shared departure conditions still need to agree when it is time to proceed. [41, Cockpit Cabin Call / Cabin Doors] [34, PDF pp. 3–4]
The form of the Cabin Ready confirmation depends on the configured aircraft options. Fenix can show it as a checklist item, a memo or no Flight Warning Computer display, with the call separately configurable. An optional indication being absent is therefore not enough to declare a failed cabin check. First establish the configuration you loaded, then recognise the confirmation expected for that workflow. This is one reason to learn the meaning of readiness rather than memorising the location of a single message. [41, Virtual Purser / VP Behaviour] [30]
There is also a dated software qualification. The developer's known-issues post of 24 October 2026, edited 25 October, listed an unresponsive FAP in FS2020 and answering Cabin Ready through the cockpit intercom as separate issues under investigation. That snapshot does not establish a working workaround or apply automatically to every later build and platform. Check the installation you are using before interpreting an unavailable interaction as something you did wrong. [42]
Original Fenix V3 FAP Cabin Status page: doors/slides, temperature, water/waste and the Cabin Ready button. Read the actual state rather than inferring that every item is ready. [2, Source illustration]
IN PRACTICE: V3 cabin readiness: separate the three confirmations
Before you begin: Coordinate the chosen boarding/ground-service/Virtual Purser workflow. This workshop spans gate preparation through the final before-takeoff readiness check; completion is tied to the actual cabin state.
1. Check the build and working interface
Action. Check the installed platform/build before relying on FAP interaction. Dave’s 24–25 October 2026 issue report lists FAP not interactable in FS2020 and answering Cabin Ready via the cockpit intercom as separate problems under investigation.
Check. An affected interaction is identified as unverified. This dated note does not claim a working workaround or make the limitation universal to every build/platform. [42]
2. Confirm actual door closure
Action. After boarding and the relevant services are complete, use the coordinated service/cabin workflow to close the required doors. Read their actual states on the working FAP and ECAM DOOR page.
Check. The required doors are reported closed. A completed service command has been followed by aircraft-state confirmation. [40, PDF pp. 2-5] [11, Chapters CIDS and FAP] [14, PDF pp. 1034-1038]
3. Confirm the slide state separately
Action. Allow the configured Virtual Purser to complete the appropriate arming actions, or use the applicable manual cabin workflow. Inspect the actual door/slide indications rather than treating door closure as proof of slide arming.
Check. The required slide state is confirmed for the intended phase and door configuration. [40, PDF pp. 6-8] [41, Virtual Purser; VP Behaviour]
4. Allow the cabin safety work to finish
Action. Follow the safety briefing and cabin-check progress through the configured cabin workflow. Let the Virtual Purser complete its checks and report readiness; do not substitute a guessed elapsed time for completion.
Check. The cabin safety work is actually complete. Readiness is a result of the cabin sequence, not simply of an earlier door indication. [41, Virtual Purser; VP Behaviour] [11, Chapters CIDS and FAP]
5. Read the configured Cabin Ready confirmation
Action. Confirm the crew report and the applicable FAP/ECAM readiness indication. Check the configuration in use: Fenix can show Cabin Ready as a checklist item, a memo or no FWC display, with the call separately configurable.
Check. The expected confirmation is interpreted for the loaded configuration. An absent optional display is not automatically called a failed cabin check. [41, Virtual Purser; VP Behaviour] [30]
6. Recheck before committing to departure
Action. At the relevant before-takeoff stage, confirm readiness again with the current door/slide and cabin state. Revisit the affected confirmations after a door change, renewed service or a new cabin issue.
Check. The final confirmation belongs to the aircraft’s present state. The departure is not relying on an out-of-date gate-side report. [11, Chapters CIDS and FAP] [14, PDF pp. 1063-1064]
Complete when: Required doors are closed, slides are in the intended state and Cabin Ready is genuinely confirmed through the working configured workflow, then rechecked at the relevant departure stage.