New UK NATS AIS Website

[Helinut]

As I often do, I just tried to call up tomorrow's NOTAMS on the AIS website to see what is going on. Great big long wait while I was transferred to another website and then this new monstrosity appears! A great big, long-winded very slow "replacement" that takes you much longer to generate a much less useful set of AIS information, full of all sorts of stuff of no use at all. It is totally not intuitive with no useful instructions and does not provide what I want.

What does anyone else think :( :eek: :confused:

[arm the floats]

Its diabolical.
What used to be a simple exercise has now become a full blown question paper.:(

[Genghis the Engineer]

When I tried this morning, it said I couldn't use it 'cos I hadn't registered. So I registered, and it said confirmation would be Emailed to me. It is now, but I had to fly today without availability of NOTAMS, which is diabolical.

I haven't actually seen the new site yet, but they have sent me an Email this evening saying I'm now allowed to use it, how generous.

G

[greenarrow]

What a carry on! First the CAA tell us to visit their site for updates only to told that they are not to be used for reference. Then telling us to contact them by Email.(Still waiting for an answer!!)
Then the format for the MET office changing to be user friendly?.
And now AIS changing to a down load (23 pages today) format if you have logged on and been given a pass ID. Please note the longer you are hunting for an answer the more money they are generating.
The harder they make it, the less people will use it and more errors, incidents, and complaints will happen. So much for safe flying!.

[Kalif]

Try this:

http://www.ais.org.uk/filestor/EGCUR83.txt

[EESDL]

NotamPro.com
You know it makes sense!
Took me 60 secs to produce a chart of relevant notams for my route today.
Well worth the bucks as it isolates you from the changing bo77acks that is currently happening at the moment and who knows about the future?

[Thomas coupling]

Absolute B****ks. Don't just sit there complain!
Send them your views via e-mail, the more of us who do it the more they may see sense:mad:

Concur with all the above

[Helinut]

It's bizarre!! The web address that Kalif quoted above in his post was usable yesterday. TODAY, however, access to it is denied!! :mad: :confused:

It feels like NATS wants to prevent us from getting this essential flight safety information. Every time we "hack" into it and find a way of obtaining it, they find a way to prevent us from using it again :confused: :(

[EESDL]

NATS - Wan7ers!!!
Is there no wonder why the business is falling apart!

[connavar]

What a pain in the R's.

Tried to get local NOTAM's and ended up with 37 pages of report, 90% of which was totally irrelevant.

For those of you wanting to make use of a sadly lacking system for a temporary period only:

Username: AISTEMP
Password: password

Please note the Username in Uppercase, Password in lower.

Anyone waiting for their own Login be patient - all are generated manually and this is a Bank Holiday Weekend after all. We can't expect ALL areas ofthe Aviation Industry to be working.

[ShyTorque]

I too just found my printer churning out 28 pages of mainly irrelevant stuff, including airfields I'm going nowhere near on my entered route. I used to be happy to print the next day's NOTAMs at home but not now, it'll bankrupt me. :rolleyes:

I emailed my concerns and got a reply shortly afterwards. I suggest everyone else emails their own difficulties to NATS too. Let's try to get it changed asap before it's too late.

There is a contact address link on the site.

[helibod]

I'm also having problems getting NOTAMS off, have e-mailed them to make my feelings known(!), and they've sent me a useless e-mail asking me if my caps lock is on!

I've mailed them back, but I'm still without NOTAMS, anyone know a free source for them?

[magbreak]

http://www.phd.nl/aviation/wx/

Top left corner select NOTAMS and enter the airfields you are interested in. The NOTAM UK takes you to the AIS site.

You can also check the London FIR and Scottish FIR.

[rustle]

Hi

FYI, there is a lot more discussion about this AIS "service" both in the Private Flying Forum (PPRuNe):

http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=64250

and on:

http://www.flyontrack.co.uk/

Cheers

Edited to add URLs

[idle stop]

Are they still issuing passwords? I'm still waiting for mine. Only 10 days so far, so shouldn't complain I suppose.
UNTIL TOMORROW, THAT IS.

OK, OK.....have just discovered that the registration has been accepted and it works. Nice to be told. Thanks for the link to the Private Pilots' forum which gave me the steer.

[Mike Cross]

For an update on what's going on please look at http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/

You can find links to other discussion forums on this subject at http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/forums.htm

Mike

[rustle]

Have a read of this:

http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/cgi-bin/ukparl_hl?DB=ukparl&STEMMER=en&WORDS=notam+&COLOUR=Red&STYLE=s&URL=/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/cm021105/text/21105w02.htm#21105w02.html_wqn5

(Extract follows)

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will make a statement on the state of faults on the UK NATS website; and when the faults will be rectified;[R] [79443]
5 Nov 2002 : Column 148W
(2) what representations he has received from UK pilots who have to log onto the Swedish air traffic service in order to obtain UK NOTAM for safety and time critical information owing to faults on the UK NATS website.[R] [79442]

Mr. Jamieson: National Air Traffic Services Ltd. introduced a new on-line information system in late August, replacing the former manual system. The change was made after extensive consultation with users. The new system is intended to provide much wider access to pre-flight information, thereby enhancing safety, but some general aviation users who are accustomed to the manual system have not found it easy to adapt.

The system is provided with back-up facilities and, while—as with most other similar websites—it may be necessary to suspend operation for very short periods, I am assured that the continuity of service will not be significantly compromised.

=============================

So who was consulted? Who is this Jamieson character who, basically, is suggesting that the problems are OUR fault?

Come on folks - this is outrageous… :mad:

[rustle]

Post-meeting info can be found in Private Flying forum:

http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=72705

[Check 6]

Try this site. (https://www.notams.jcs.mil) There are many options, including airports, radius search, route search, etc.

[rustle]

Hi Check 6

Local NOTAMs can only be obtained from the local AIS.

There are a large number of NOTAMs affecting UK operators that will not and should not be promulgated overseas.

Believe me, if it was as simple as looking at one of the splendid US NOTAM sites or other European sites our problems would have disappeared here in the UK on about August 22nd.

Russell

[Mike Cross]

For an update on the meeting that took place at AIS Heathrow on Friday please go to:-
http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/news!.htm

Then get back here and start posting!

Mike

[Thomas coupling]

They seem more bothered about their 7 or 9 hour downtime than the accessibility of the flaming web site!!!

I got the impression that even after you had succintly put the salient points across, that it was falling on deaf ears at times. Is this going to be a military driven long term affair??

Thank you for covering all the relevant improvement points and taking the time to fight this particular corner for joe average pilot.....

[The Nr Fairy]

mrcross :

Can you edit your URL to point to http://www.telecall.uk.com/ais/news!.htm - don't work easily otherwise !

[Mike Cross]

Aaaargh!

My stupid fault for including an exclamation mark in the URL in the first place.

Done

Mike