What is a DCS kneeboard flight plan?

It is a set of PNG pages you read in the DCS World kneeboard: the route, frequencies, and a map around bullseye. It is a written copy of the plan, not data loaded into the avionics.

What does DCS Planner export for the kneeboard?

PNG files only. The Spider card is 800 by 1200 pixels and needs a bullseye. The Mission card writes print-sized 768 by 1024 pages, one PNG per sheet. The planner does not embed those PNGs in a .miz and does not export a PDF.

What is the spider card?

It is a polar map centered on a selected bullseye. It draws range rings in nautical miles, the route, units, airfields, and optional waypoint or radio tables as an overlay or a second page.

Where do I put the PNG so DCS loads it?

Copy the downloaded PNG files into Saved Games\DCS\Kneeboard, or into a per-aircraft subfolder there. DCS then shows them as extra kneeboard pages. The .miz export does not carry these images.

Do I still need a DTC if I have a kneeboard?

The kneeboard is a page you read. A DTC loads steerpoints and other jet settings into the avionics. Use both when you want the cartridge in the system and a written backup.

Guides

Make a DCS Kneeboard Flight Plan (PNG Export)

A DCS World kneeboard is the paper in the cockpit: PNG pages you flip without leaving the jet. DCS Planner builds those pages from the current plan and downloads them as PNG files.

This page is the kneeboard export detail for the step-by-step DCS mission planning workflow.

How DCS kneeboards work

In DCS World, the kneeboard is a stack of image pages you flip in the cockpit. Custom pages are PNG files. DCS reads them from its kneeboard folders and shows them next to the jet's built-in pages.

DCS Planner writes those PNGs from the current plan. It does not write them into a .miz. The .miz export stays a separate file: units, drawings, and bullseye.

The planner kneeboard has two cards. The Spider card is a polar map around bullseye. The Mission card is print-sized briefing pages you can edit: route, radios, airbases, and notes. Open Kneeboard from the planner header, or press K.

What belongs on a good kneeboard

A useful card is the data you will look up without leaving the jet. From a flight plan, the Mission card can fill:

Route: waypoint number, name, altitude, and time-on-target (TOT). See DCS Flight Plan: Waypoints, Headings & Routes.
Airbases: departure, arrival, and alternate when the first, last, or an alternate waypoint sits on a known field (TACAN, tower, elevation, runways, ILS). Gulf fields and frequencies are listed in the Persian Gulf mission planning guide
UHF and VHF presets (preset number, frequency, name) when radios are set
Bullseye name and coordinates. See DCS Bullseye Explained (BRAA vs Bullseye).
Support assets (tanker / AWACS callsign, frequency, TACAN) when they exist on the plan

The Spider card adds the picture: the route, SAM and AAA threat rings, airfields, and mission drawings around the selected bullseye. See DCS SAM Threat Rings & Route Planning for how those rings are drawn. Optional overlay tables recap waypoint legs (distance and heading) and radios (tankers, fighters, airfields).

Assignment, flights, and staff tables fill when a squadron mission is loaded. On a local plan those blocks stay empty unless you type them.

Building one from your plan

Pick a theater, drop waypoints, and set bullseye. Open Kneeboard. Airfield tower and TACAN on the card come from the same catalog as the map; for Syria see the Syria mission planning guide. The Mission card starts from the default pages: Mission data (assignment, airbases, your flight, route, UHF, VHF, supports) and Notes. Presets swap that layout (Strike lead, Wingman, SEAD). You can add or remove blocks, pair UHF with VHF, and change paper, ink, and type size. Long tables split onto continuation sheets; each sheet is its own PNG.

The Spider card needs a bullseye. Place one on the map or import a .miz / CombatFlite .cf that defines it. The card centers on the selected blue, red, or manual point. Range rings are in nautical miles (auto step, or a manual step). The background is coastlines or imagery. You can show or hide threat rings, coalitions, and airfields, and print bullseye coordinates as DD, DM, DMS, or MGRS.

Overlay tables default off. Turn on the waypoint table and/or the radio table. Keep them on the map (overlay) or send them to a second 800×1200 page (separate). Export is blocked on the Spider card until a bullseye exists.

Export PNG from the card. The Spider card writes one file, or two when a data page exists. The Mission card writes one 768×1024 PNG per sheet, named from the mission and the page title.

Open the planner

Where to drop the file so DCS loads it

The planner downloads the PNG files to your computer. Copy them into Saved Games\DCS\Kneeboard. DCS also reads a per-aircraft subfolder under that path. After you copy the files, they appear as extra pages in the in-cockpit kneeboard.

Use the Saved Games folder for the DCS install you fly (stable and Open Beta are separate). The planner does not copy files into DCS for you, and the .miz export does not embed these PNGs.

Kneeboard vs. in-cockpit DTC/data card

A kneeboard PNG is a page you read. A DTC (Data Transfer Cartridge) is a file the jet loads: steerpoints, radio presets, and other avionics data. Use the DTC when you want the INS and radios filled. Keep a kneeboard when you want a written route, frequencies, and the bullseye picture. They are separate exports. The Hornet also loads a native cartridge; see DCS F/A-18C Mission Planning & Waypoints.

FAQ

What is a DCS kneeboard flight plan?: It is a set of PNG pages you read in the DCS World kneeboard: the route, frequencies, and a map around bullseye. It is a written copy of the plan, not data loaded into the avionics.
What does DCS Planner export for the kneeboard?: PNG files only. The Spider card is 800 by 1200 pixels and needs a bullseye. The Mission card writes print-sized 768 by 1024 pages, one PNG per sheet. The planner does not embed those PNGs in a .miz and does not export a PDF.
What is the spider card?: It is a polar map centered on a selected bullseye. It draws range rings in nautical miles, the route, units, airfields, and optional waypoint or radio tables as an overlay or a second page.
Where do I put the PNG so DCS loads it?: Copy the downloaded PNG files into Saved Games\DCS\Kneeboard, or into a per-aircraft subfolder there. DCS then shows them as extra kneeboard pages. The .miz export does not carry these images.
Do I still need a DTC if I have a kneeboard?: The kneeboard is a page you read. A DTC loads steerpoints and other jet settings into the avionics. Use both when you want the cartridge in the system and a written backup.