Updating the FMS

[5milesbaby]

In the very early hours of 16th March the London West sectors are changing quite considerably, with new routes and lots of new points introduced. I know that the points can be input to the FMS during an update anytime the Lat/Long has been decided, and that the flight plan will give the correct routing for the pilots to select the routing points, but my question is about the stored routes. I understand that the FMS can store the routes regularly flown by an airline and this will save time inputting every fix, but how soon after the change can say a fleet of 30 a/c have all the new routes updated? Is it just updated every time a new route is input by the first pilots using a particular a/c on the route, or can a bulk update be downloaded? How long would the new airspace details take to update? Finally, if say flying from Manchester to Tenerife via the new airspace, how long will it take to manually input all the fix's if the FMS only has the old route stored?

Thanks from a curious ATCO!

[B737MRG]

The FMC has 2 databases, 1 is active, the other one is 'available'. The databases contain all navaids, airports, company routes, ...

The airline can upload the new database in advance.

When the crew enters the flight deck on March 16, all they have to do, is to select the new database named "march 16 till...".

[shlittlenellie]

Stored routes can be updated whenever the FMC database is updated (usually on a 3-4 week cycle). The stored routes will be arranged by the airline and input by the database provider. My company (40+ aircraft) do not use stored routes and have not done so for 6 years. Special updates can arrive outside of the update cycle.

Entering routes manually isn't particularly onerous and it consumes about three minutes at the start of a flight. What usually is a problem after an airspace change is that new waypoints are not in the database and, as you point out, every such waypoint has to be entered as latitude and longitude and that means when we're given direct to somewhere that isn't stored, we may have to ask for the lat and long and that consumes radio times and it takes us longer to turn.

The problem would be greater with prnav arrivals and departures but I don't know any any (yet) in the London area.

[OzExpat]

I daresay that the UK CAA would already have notified Jeppesen of the changes and that they've already been implemented by all the database providers. Thus it's likely that most, if not all, airlines will have the new information in good time to meet the start date.

[5milesbaby]

cheers for the replies, nice to know that we shouldn't have to try and spell out the new points to everyone! Fortunately our kit at Swanwick means that we just have to type the fix name into our Suplimentary Information Screen and all you and we need will instantly come up in a window.

shlittlenellie, as far as I'm aware there is only one prnav approach established in the London TMA, that being the Goodwood 1D (?) into Gatwick, and is only used by BAW when we can accommodate it, and is in a trial period at present.

[Jonty]

When inputing a route to the FMC, you dont have to put every way point in. just the Airway number and the point at wich you leave that airway and then the folowing airway. eg UM30 QPR UN866 KORUL ect.... the FMC will then put all the waypionts in order.

[5milesbaby]

The only problem with inputting the airways themselves is that although the names are staying the points are changing so unless the FMS has the update in, anyone from 16th March will be navigating old and incorrect routes.

[B737MRG]

For info ; my flight this morning catched 10 minutes delay... Reason : maintenance was uploading the new database "March16-April12-2006"

[Max Angle]

We spend 90% of our time in London airspace on headings anyway so I can't see it making much difference.

[5milesbaby]

Lol Max Angle, unfortunately the airspace that is changing is being improved to establish some routes to avoid constant headings (they are going to be "radar monitored" deemed separated) and is also such a large expanse for the transitting oceanics that headings aren't a huge part of the workload!

[tired]

5miles- our databases are updated on exactly the same cycle that your airspace changes are implemented, as defined by ICAO. These changes can only be implemented on the dates as defined in some ICAO doc or other. It's years since I've looked at things like that so I can't remember the details, but I think contracting states update on a 28 day cycle, (it's the same cycle that AIP supps etc are issued) and have to give 56 days notice of intention to update, in order to give the database suppliers like Jepp time to incorporate the changes into their databases. When our database changes it also updates the stored company routes, so you shouldn't have to do too much explaining on the 16th, except maybe to steam driven aeroplanes without databases.

Alos, there are prnav STARs on trial to LHR as well as to LGW. (Or did you mean an actual approach?)