A Complete Manual for Conducting International Flight Operations

International Flight Planning

International Flight Planning may be accomplished in a variety of ways. Most flight operations file flightplans through 3rd parties such as ARINC www.arinc.com, Universal Weather www.universalweather.com, Honeywell Global Data Center www.mygdc.com, Jeppesen www.jeppesen.com, Rockwell Collins Ascend www.rockwellcollins.com, etc.

 

3rd parties will send a form requesting aircraft specific information, pilot preferences for flight planning such as target  fuel reserves , ETOPS requirements, flight plan biases, etc.  and company information. Once a 3rd party has your basic information and preferences they will be able to generate flight plans with very basic pilot inputs for the specific flight such as fuel on board, prefered alternate, preferred mach speed and altitude.

 

Another option is to develop profiles on sites such as Fltplan.com or Mygdc.com which allow flight crewmembers to calculate their own flightplans and file ICAO flight plans. At the moment Fltplan.com is somewhat limited for filing International flight plans, however it works quite well for trips to Hawaii, the Carribean and Mexico. Also be aware that Fltplan.com does not calculate ETP's or quick recalls for uploading flight plans into the FMS.

Flight Plan Specifics

SLOT TIMES

Not all foreign airports have slot times. However, if they do have slot times, your work load for obtaining revised slot times and keeping your passengers on schedule increases significantly. Generally Air Traffic Flow and Capacity Management will issue a slot to an aircraft. If, however, passengers are running late, the responsibility to revise slot times and to ensure that slot does not go unused falls on the shoulders of the flight crew.

If crewmembers have their passengers aboard and desire a departure time +/- 5 minutes earlier than what is indicated in a SAM, they may receive a SRM- Slot Revision Message, which is based upon a RFI- Request for Improvement. If an improvement of 15 minutes or more is desired by the crewmembers, a SIP- Slot Improvement Proposal is submitted and a new CTOT- Calculated Takeoff Time will be issued.

 

The most important aspect for crewmembers to remember is to never let a slot expire, as doing so will put the aircraft at the bottom of the list when requesting a new slot.

 

European Slot Time Terminology

 

CTOT (Calculated Takeoff Time)

CFMU (Central Flow Management Unit)

A time, calculated and issued by the appropriate Central Management Unit as a result of tactical slot allocation, at which a flight is expected to become airborne. Or,

 

An Air Traffic Flow & Capacity Management (ATFCM) departure slot, forming part of an Air Traffic Control (ATC) clearance, which is issued to a flight affected by Network Management regulations. It is defined by a time and tolerance (-5 to +10 minutes) during which period the flight is expected to take-off.

A directorate of Eurocontrol, located in Brussels. Now called "Network Manager Directorate (NMD)".

 

The (SAM) slot allocation message will be provided generally to the operator and the tower at the departure airport. The slot allocation message will give the Calculated Takeoff Time as well as the Estimated Off Block Time. Flight crews need to have passengers loaded in order to have the aircraft ready for taxi by the EOBT to meet the CTOT within a tolerance of -5 minutes to +10 minutes. (Scott IPC)

EOBT (Estimated Off Block Time)

The estimated time at which the aircraft will commence movement associated with departure.

SAM (Slot Allocation Message)

A message giving a Calculated Take-Off Time (CTOT) sent by the Computer-Assisted Slot Allocation (CASA) system of the Enhanced Tactical Flow Management System (ETFMS) to the operators of regulated flights a maximum of two hours before the Estimated Off-Block Time (EOBT).

SRM (Slot Revision Message)

Standard message from CFMU (Central Flow Management Unit) sent when flight regulations are revised. Or

 

A message sent by the Computer-Assisted Slot Allocation (CASA) system, giving a New Calculated Take-Off Time (NEWCTOT). The NEWCTOT replaces the previous CTOT and shows either an earlier or later time, or the same time with another restriction.

If crewmembers have their passengers aboard and desire a departure time +/- 5 minutes earlier than what is indicated in a SAM, they may receive a SRM- Slot Revision Message, which is based upon a RFI- Request for Improvement. If an improvement of 15 minutes or more is desired by the crewmembers, a SIP- Slot Improvement Proposal is submitted and a new CTOT- Calculated Takeoff Time will be issued. The most important aspect for crewmembers to remember is to never let a slot expired as doing so will put the aircraft at the bottom of the list when requesting a new slot.

 

If a crewmember needs assistance in obtaining slots, or coordinating slots, the FMD Helpdesk shall be contacted.

 

The phone number for the helpdesk is: Tel: 00-32-2-729-1901

 

Revision date: July 29, 2015

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The material contained on this site is to be used for reference  only. You should always follow your primary resources first (aircraft manuals, government regulations, etc.).

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