New source for Notams

[drauk]

It's early days, so it's still in "beta", but the fly.dsc.net website now can do local area and route briefings.

Currently it only offers Notams for the London FIR (EGTT) though if it proves successful it will have others. It's pretty fast and hopefully easy to use. It has fairly comprehensive filtering capabilities so that you can get the list down to the minimum size that suits your flying. The briefing for a radius around a point is quite useful for flying in the local area. Both this and the waypoints on a route briefing can be almost anywhere, from navaids to villages. You can also easily bookmark as many as you like to run them in the future.

The output has been designed to be easy to scan read. Try pressing the space bar in your browser to move down a page at a time.

http://fly.dsc.net/u/Notams

[mark147]

It's early days, so it's still in "beta", but the fly.dsc.net website now can do local area and route briefings.
http://fly.dsc.net/u/Notams
Hey -- that has the potential to be extremely useful.

It has a few quirks at the moment but it's pretty encouraging -- I assume this was knocked up pretty quickly following the earlier discussions about NOTAMS? Well done.

Things I noticed:
- NOTAMs that are both airfield and enroute appear twice (e.g. Redhill NDB)
- could do with finer control over the NOTAMs displayed, e.g. daytime flights would not need to know about obstruction lights, IFR OCAS would not need flow control NOTAMs; perhaps some template options aimed at day VFR, night 'VFR', IFR OCAS and complete?
- plot on map didn't work for me (just got a red star marking my destination)
- a base map marking airfields and major towns would be better than one showing roads

Mark

[drauk]

- NOTAMs that are both airfield and enroute appear twice (e.g. Redhill NDB)

This has been fixed.

- could do with finer control over the NOTAMs displayed, e.g. daytime flights would not need to know about obstruction lights, IFR OCAS would not need flow control NOTAMs; perhaps some template options aimed at day VFR, night 'VFR', IFR OCAS and complete?

Obviously the mechanics of the filtering aren't difficult now the infrastructure is there. It's more a question of not overwhelming the user with options - cerrtainly filtering on each and every subject would probably do this. Some presets could work, as you suggest, but then there is debate about what is relevant to each type of flight. I'll think about it.

- plot on map didn't work for me (just got a red star marking my destination)

That's a shame, because this is really useful when it works. I'd like to fix this but I'll need some more info. Any chance you could let me know what browser you're using and also send me a screen shot of your browser so I can see exactly what you're seeing?

- a base map marking airfields and major towns would be better than one showing roads

This isn't going to happen I'm afraid. It would be nice I suppose, but personally I don't think it's a big deal - the point is to be able to see where the things are and you can do that easily enough even with roads on the map. It's a question of the source of the maps and Google map API.

Thanks for the feedback; it's very useful.

Edited to say:

I now know that the maps relate to a problem specific to Internet Explorer, which I'll have a look at. In the mean time, use Firefox.

[rustle]

I may have said this elsewhere, but it bears repeating ;)

Works perfectly in IE7 :)

This mapping of NOTAMs which, er, can't be done... You realise you are making thales look even more absolutely useless than they managed by themselves (no mean feat!)... :D

I am still cross-checking against AIS site and/or AvBrief (when the AIS site falls over again) - but I haven't found any errors yet.

When you re-hosted the AIP/AICs you deserved a medal - or at least recognition for your efforts.

NOTAMs and maybe even graphical NOTAMs are even better.

Thanks, drauk. Excellent.

AAMOI, how many developers and how many man hours/days went into these enhancements (i.e. not including the already brilliant planner bit)?

[rotorcraig]

Fantastic stuff drauk - well done!

Map thingy works really well on my IE6 ... zoom in and switch to the satellite photo and the center point of the Northampton Balloon Festival NOTAM is bang on the Racecourse. Works for me!

RC

[OpenCirrus619]

Like it :D :D :D :ok:

Thales :yuk:

OC619

[helicopter-redeye]

Ironic the way it lists Finningley Doncaster-Sheffield Robin Hood as an 'unlicensed farm strip' ..

[bellend]

Brilliant,

Easy to use

Why cant CAA do something like this, just cant get to grips with the offical notam software and I would class myself as extremely computer literate .I hope this project continues to develop would be a shame to lose it

[dublinpilot]

Drauk,

You need to do something about the route validation.

I understand that you have it limited to the London FIR at present?

So put in a route:

EGNH Blackpool
EGNS Isle of Man
EIDW Dublin
EINN Shannon

The route was accepted, but when I plotted it on the map, is was clearly well out. While for something this far out it is obvious, but if it wasn't so far out, it might not be obvious to the use.

dp

[Mike Cross]

Why cant CAA do something like this
Please step out of your warm cosy utopian dream for a moment, into the real world and stop asking the CAA to do anything.

If they do anything it will take forever and cost a fortune. Would you like to have three guesses at where the bill will end up?

[drauk]

dublinpilot,
I don't really follow what you're saying to be honest, but I'd certainly like to find out if there is a problem.
Notams are only for the London FIR, but plotting a route should work anywhere in the world.
I put in the exact idents you mentioned and go this route. Is this not what you'd expect?
http://www.da.dsc.net/flying/images/gcmap1.gif

[IO540]

Drauk is doing a brilliant job here. We should all support him and report anything that needs fixing, and any useful tips for features, etc.

As regards CAA doing something, no chance. CAA is busy writing emails/letters nowadays claiming to be a regulator/prosecutor only, with no responsibility for service provision.

GA doesn't even feature on the air traffic horizon in the UK. We are tolerated, no more. This isn't the USA, where loads of people use GA as a means of transport.

[drauk]

Ironic the way it lists Finningley Doncaster-Sheffield Robin Hood as an 'unlicensed farm strip' ..

Not sure which waypoint you're looking at; if you could tell me the ID number that shows in the URL it will help pin it down.

"FINNINGLEY" may be listed as "Airfield (unlicensed, farm strip or private)" because I guess it was once and one of the lists of airfields we used had all kinds of historic ones.

Meanwhile "Doncaster Sheffield Robin Hood" is listed as a licensed airfield with its approach plates and all that other stuff.

[dublinpilot]

Drauk,

Perhaps I've done something wrong.

I DIDN'T log in.

I clicked Plan.

I entered the waypoints as ICAO codes only.

EGNH
EGNS
EIDW
EINN

I then clicked "Get Notams"
I then clicked "Show on Map".

I got this:http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/2594/image2hx2.jpg

Not sure where I am going wrong.

dp

[drauk]

At a guess you left the country set to UK when you entered the waypoints. Select 'Any' and try it.

After clicking Plan, look at the list of waypoints that it has found. If you've set the country to UK and enter 'EINN' it can't find it, so it tries to find something else that you might have meant. The best it can find is 'Alsop en le Dale' (presumably because 'en' sounds a bit like 'einn') so it uses that. BEFORE clicking on the map link you can select from the various other choices that it has offered.

[dublinpilot]

Ah yes, I see it now.

No notam options yet, when using "Any".

Guess us Irish will have to wait a little longer :\

[bellend]

Please step out of your warm cosy utopian dream for a moment, into the real world and stop asking the CAA to do anything.
If they do anything it will take forever and cost a fortune. Would you like to have three guesses at where the bill will end up?

OK I have put the bag of glue away back to reality now! BTW you sound Cross !

[Mike Cross]

Not cross, but I suspect I'm having a Marvin moment.
http://www.c7nema.net/canais/ppl/guide/2.jpg
The thought of the CAA doing anything always brings on the depression.

[bellend]

if your not cross what is your real name:D :} :}

Agree CAA spells trouble, no worries just banter!

Bellend

[bcfc]

drauk, excellent site and it remains one of my favorites :ok:

I did a quick try-out of the NOTAMs on my Blackberry (8700g) and I'm just getting the text, no maps. It all renders gracefully, but no images. It's evidently Google as nothing appears when I go to Google Maps directly.

Cheers
-bcfc

[drauk]

Guess us Irish will have to wait a little longer

It has some extra FIRs now, including one covering Ireland.