AFTN Flight Plan Addresses
 

As a pilot, I was wondering how you Ops folks cope with addressing Flight Plans correctly with the many different AFTN addresses that are required when operating outside of Europe. I suspect most systems will address the Plan automatically? For those that do it the long winded way - where do you get your AFTN address data from?

Do you always have to send it to the departure and arrival airfield or will the FIR AFTN address normally suffice?

Any help or information would be appreciated!

Hey,

yeah , you was right. Most planning tools do adress the plan automatically to the systems :)

CAP550, look it up :ok:

Done that already actually. The one question I have from that document relates to cases when a flight ends outside the IFPS area. On some of the lists of AFTN addresses at the back of the document, the final address is for the FIR and not the arrival airfield.

Is one always supposed to add the arrival airfield or does the example above mean that the parent FIR will pass flight plan details to the destination airfield within that FIR?

If the plan originates inside the IFPZ then you will need to address to the destination and alternates. IFPS used to do it automatically.

What system are you using for filing ??

Ah right... so for a flight that start off in the IFPZ and lands outside it, one has to add the destination and diversion airfield in addition to any addresses in CAP550? Such addresses are not in the CAP550 are they? Does one simply add ZTZX to the end of the Airfield ID?

I am using the NATS AFPEx system.

With AFPex it will add IFPS if the origin is indie that zone. Outside, then you add the addresses ZPZX and ZTZX as standard. Some airfieds though require ZQZX to be added. CAP550 will cover all your needs though.

Do you use a system to validate your route when inside the IFPZ ? Or do you just fire it into the test cell ? What about routes outside IFPZ, how do you validate them ?

Thanks for your help. I use the IFPUV internet site to verify any routes in Europe. I have not needed to plan a trip outside of the IFPZ yet and validating such routes was something I did consider.

I suspect this is where Flight Planing software is needed or can one manage without that?

Geezer - you have a PM

The most difficutl item here in Italy is how to access to the AFTN network.

If not readdressed by the flt planning system, the best chance is by using CFMU Eurocontrol sita addresses and including there any address of IFPZ outside country.

(below from AIS Agora forum)
AFTN addresses are build by using apt/fir ICAO code plus:
YAYX Government CAA
YCYX RCC
YDYX Aerodrome Authority
YFYX Aeronautical Fixed Station
YMYX WX Office
YNYX International NOTAM Office
YTYX Telecom Authority
YWYX Military OCC
YXYX Military Ops
ZOZX Oceanic ATCC
ZPZX ARO
ZQZX ARTCC
ZRZX ACC
ZTZX CTL TWR
ZZZX Aircraft inflight

an AFTN Address Indicator is "built" out of the Location Indicator from ICAO Document 7910 and out of the three letter indicator from ICAO Document 8585. In addition a filling letter (usually the "X") has to be added to have an 8 digits Address.
So if you like to get the full information about possible meanings of the last 3 letters check the ICAO Document 8585 where this information comes from.

Geezer - you don't need flt planning software (though it makes it a lot quicker), it's perfectly ok to do it long hand. The main problems though are access to the AFTN network if you haven't got it, and access to all the FIR/airfield addresses. Just grab yourself the applicable ICAO docs as vipero mentions and off you go. Me personally I prefer to do it long hand especially if its somewhere I've not been before, there is some well dodgy software around.
cheers

ZFZX
 

I can't find ZFZX anywhere, but I see it might be ACC VFR. or is VFR/IFR ACC both ZFZX? Thanks for the help.

ZFZX
 

ZFZX is for VFR flying - this is the FIC.