FOMS Menu 220 (Aircraft Characteristics Program) - Add Mode

Field

Description

ID

The key parameter in the Aircraft Characteristics data file is the aircraft identification number. This can be any combination of three or four numbers or letters.

In all modes except Add, you may use the aircraft registration to call up the required aircraft record.

Type

Enter the aircraft type (e.g., A320).

Series

Enter the series designation of the aircraft (e.g., 30) or <?> to scroll through options.

Engines

Enter the type of engine installed on the aircraft (e.g., CF6-50E2) or <?> to scroll through options.

Unt

Enter the type of units of weight that this particular aircraft is calibrated in, lbs <L> or kgs <K>.

Reg

Enter the complete International registration for the aircraft (e.g., N123AB).

CC

Enter the Country Code for this Aircraft (this will override the ALC Domestic CC so only fill in if it differs from the standard).

ALC

The standard airline code for your airline. If you have a Multi-ALC and want to use the aircraft for different ALCs, leave this blank. 

FMT

Enter the default (OFP) format number for the flight plan for both Domestic and International flights. 

If left blank, the system will default to the format specified in the Airline Code Parameter file. 

This field is intended to allow you to specify a format for those aircraft that are non-standard.

Reserve

Enter the Domestic and International Reserve Code policy numbers, or use the <?> search function. 

If the search function is used, the policy displays in the lower left corner of the screen. Use the up and down arrows to scroll through the options, and press <Enter> to select. These reserve policies will load as the default when the FIN for the aircraft is entered in the Plan screen. The user can change the defaults from the Plan screen.

Expires

This field indicates when an aircraft is to expire.This field is optional. A report can be generated indicating what aircraft is about to expire and when. 

NOTE: Contact support for more information. 

Profile

Enter the default performance profile (PPK) for this aircraft (e.g., LRC, GDE, HSC, or M78), or use the <?> search function. 

If you use the search function, the policy displays in the lower left corner of the screen. Use the up and down arrows to scroll through the options, and press <Enter> to select.

Opt CI

Indicate whether to use OPT CI in the flight plan. Options are yes <Y> or no <N>.

Min/Max Opt CI

Enter the minimum and maximum to control the optimum cost index. The optimum cost index will not fall outside of this range.

CI Adjust

This field is intended for specific use for A330 planning when using Opt CI. It compensates for optimum cost index results vs FMS entry. Valid entries are between -999 and 999. 

Entering -999 will select CI000 and entering 999 will select CI999 (if available). If they are not available, the closest CI value will be chosen.

Climb Bias

Enter the deviation from base-line climb performance data. 

• 1.000 represents nominal performance. 

• If the aircraft burns more than standard, then enter a value greater than 1, e.g., if an aircraft is burning 5% more than standard book values, enter 1.05. 

• The limits are -10% to +25%, i.e., 0.900 to 1.250.

Additional Climb Bias

Enter any additional climb bias. The limits are -10% to +25%. The field does not accept negative numbers and the Climb plus Additional bias cannot exceed a total of -10% to +25%.

Climb Time Bias

Enter any fixed amounts of time by which you want to bias the climb performance data.

Climb Fuel Bias

Enter any fixed amounts of fuel by which you want to bias the climb performance data.

Cruise Bias

Enter the deviation from baseline cruise performance data. 

• 1.000 represents nominal performance. 

• If the aircraft burns more than standard, enter a value greater than 1, e.g., if an aircraft is burning 5% more than standard book values, enter 1.05. 

• The limits are -10% to +25%.

Additional Cruise Bias

Enter any additional cruise bias. The limits are -10% to +25%. The field does not accept negative numbers and the Climb plus Additional bias cannot exceed a total of -10% to +25%.

Descent Bias

Enter the deviation from baseline descent performance data. 

• 1.000 represents nominal performance. 

• If the aircraft burns more than standard, enter a value greater than 1, e.g., if an aircraft is burning 5% more than standard book values, enter 1.05. 

• The limits are -10% to +25%.

Additional Descent Bias

Enter any additional descent bias. The limits are -10% to +25%. The field does not accept negative numbers and the Climb plus Additional bias cannot exceed a total of -10% to +25%.

Descent Time Bias

Enter any fixed amounts of time by which you want to bias the descent performance data.

Descent Fuel Bias

Enter any fixed amounts of fuel by which you want to bias the descent performance data.

Min Desc

Enter the minimum descent fuel amount.

Hold Bias

Enter the deviation from baseline hold performance data. 

• 1.000 represents nominal performance. 

• If the aircraft burns more than standard, enter a value greater than 1, e.g., if an aircraft is burning 5% more than standard book values, enter 1.05. 

• The limits are -10% to +25%.

Additional Hold Bias

Enter any additional hold bias. The limits are -10% to +25%. The field does not accept negative numbers and the Climb plus Additional bias cannot exceed a total of -10% to +25%.

Additional Alt Bias

Enter any additional alternate bias. The limits are -10% to +25%. The field does not accept negative numbers and the Climb plus Additional bias cannot exceed a total of -10% to +25%.

Alt Time Bias

Enter any fixed amounts of time by which you want to bias the alternate performance data (climb only)

Alt Fuel Bias

Enter any fixed amounts of fuel by which you want to bias the alternate performance data (climb only).

Alt Min

Enter Minimum Alternate burn. This is a mandatory field.

Idle / PF

Enter an idle factor value and performance factor. This value can be displayed on the Flight Plan, but has no effect on the calculation.

Ramp

Enter the maximum allowable weight of the aircraft prior to taxi.

MTOW

Enter the maximum certified take-off weight this aircraft has been certified for flight.

Variable MTOW MIN/MAX

Enter the minimum and maximum variable take-off weight values to calculate a variable MTOW. This field is optional. 

Example: Some aircraft allow the typical maximum take-off weight to be exceeded to allow for a larger payload. As the MTOW is increased, the zero-fuel weight (ZFW) decreases in a linear fashion, thus fuel may be sacrificed for payload to an acceptable point. 

MZFW

Enter the maximum zero-fuel weight for which this aircraft has been certified for flight.

Variable ZFW MIN/MAX

Enter the minimum and maximum variable zero-fuel weights to calculate a variable ZFW.

Example: Some aircraft allow the typical zero fuel weight to be exceeded to allow for a larger payload. As the ZFW is increased, the maximum take-off weight (MTOW) decreases in a linear fashion, thus fuel may be sacrificed for payload to an acceptable point. 

Min ZFW: Enter the minimum zero fuel weight.

Note: If the calculated zero fuel weight is below the MIN ZFW then BALLAST fuel will be automatically added. Typically, this is a parameter to enable, where by default ballast is not part of ZFW. Be mindful that the ballast could reduce your max payload if limited by MZFW. The system displays a warning message if ballast fuel was added to meet MIN ZFW.

MaxFuel Wgt

Enter the maximum weight of fuel that may be boarded with all tanks full.

Vol / Max Fuel Volume

Enter the maximum fuel volume, the value will be converted based on the fuel density of the departure airport and will be used as the maximum fuel tank limit. Max fuel uplift weight is ignored if the volume amount is specified.

Unit

Enter max fuel volume unit (USG, LIT, UKG).

Min Flt Wgt

Enter the minimum flight weight to automatically add to ballast fuel.

Min Disp

Enter the minimum amount of fuel that must be on the aircraft for it to be flown, according to your Company policy. Note: Do not make this less than Min Landing Fuel.

Reclear Pad

Enter the default value for Planned Redispatch Fuel Padding.

Spare Tank

This field only applies when using:

• the Max, 

• OPT, 

• or Table tankering options. 

Enter a weight value to reduce tankerage and leave room for last minute payload addition. The system will calculate the desired tankerage and then subtract the Spare Tank amount.

Example: Below you can see a difference in the XTR field (244215 lbs in the flight plan with Max Spare set to 10000 lbs vs 254215 lbs in the flight plan with Max Spare set to 0)

Field

Description

Ballast

Enter the amount of standard ballast fuel. This value will populate the corresponding field in the Fuel Group (Plan screen of the NFP UI).

Spare

Enter the weight of the spares.

Dom/Intl Hold Fuel/Time

These entries enable the user to control exactly how the hold fuel is to be calculated and whether or not hold performance data is available. If hold performance is available (and part of the selected Performance Profile Key), then these fields may be used to define minimum values for holding fuel. In most cases, however, if holding performance data is available, then these fields may be left blank. 

Hold Performance Available?

Dom/Intl Hold Field Entry

Fixed / Minimum Flag

Dom/Intl Time Field Entry

Hold Calculation

Yes

Blank

Blank

Blank

Fuel will be calculated using the hold performance tables and the time specified in the main parameter file.

Yes

Blank

Blank

Any value

Fuel will be calculated using the hold performance tables and the time specified in the Dom/Intl Time field.

Yes

Any value

Fixed

Blank

Fuel will be the amount specified (Any Value). Time will be the time specified in the main parameter file.

Yes

Any value

Fixed

Zero (0)

Fuel will be the amount specified (Any Value). Time will be calculated as a function of the amount of hold fuel. (see below)

Yes

Any value

Fixed

Any value > 0

Both Fuel and Time values will be the Fixed values entered. No calculations will be performed.

Yes

Any value

Minimum

Blank

Fuel will be the greater of (a) Any value and (b) an amount calculated using the Hold Time specified in the main parameter file. Time will be the time specified in the main parameter file.

Yes

Any value

Minimum

Any value > 0

Fuel will be the greater of (a) Any value and (b) an amount calculated using the Hold Time specified in the Dom/Intl. Time field. Time will be the time specified in the Dom/Intl Time field.

No

Blank

Blank

Blank

This condition is not permitted by the Aircraft Characteristics program. If there is no hold performance data in the Performance Profile Key, then the Hold fields become mandatory.

No

Blank

Blank

Any value

This condition is not permitted by the Aircraft Characteristics program. If there is no hold performance data in the Performance Profile Key, then the Hold fields become mandatory.

No

Any value

Fixed

Blank

Fuel will be the value entered (Any Value). Time will be the value specified in the main parameter file.

No

Any value

Fixed

Any value

Both Fuel and Time values will be the Fixed values entered. No calculations will be performed.

No

Any value

Minimum

This condition is not permitted by the Aircraft Characteristics program. If there is no hold performance data in the Performance Profile Key, then the Fixed/Minimum Flag MUST be Fixed”.

Field

Description

No Alt

If there is no Alternate selected on the flight plan, then use this burn for XX lbs/kgs.

• Select where this fuel should be displayed:

  • (A)lt/(H)old

  • A(D)ditional

• Set the burn in Time (minutes) instead of in fuel

RTE IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) Fuel

Enter the amount of route IFR fuel.

RTE IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) Time

Enter the route IFR time.

ALT IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) Fuel

Enter the amount of alternate IFR fuel.

ALT IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) Time

Enter the alternate IFR time.

Min Elev

Enter the Destination airport elevation (feet). 

If left blank, the number will default to 0.

MLW

Enter the structural max landing weight.

MLW Tkg Reduction

Enter a weight value to reduce max landing weight by this amount if tanker fuel is used. The purpose of this reduction is to create a buffer when tankering should you burn less fuel during the flight than planned.

MLW Rwy Reduction / Rwy MLW

Reduce structural max landing weight by amount entered if an unpaved runway is used (i.e., Soft, Water).

MTOW Rwy Reduction / Rwy MTOW

Reduce structural max takeoff weight by amount entered if an unpaved runway is used (i.e., Soft, Water).

Driftdown Penalty

Enter the penalty amount to apply to the driftdown calculations that determine what flight levels are valid. It does not affect the burn calculations but it may lower the level-off altitude. 

Enr Climb Penalty

Enter the penalty amount to apply to the enroute climb calculations that determine what flight levels are valid. It does not affect the burn calculations but it may lower the max climb altitude.

Min Land

Minimum Fuel/Time: Enter minimum landing fuel or minimum landing fuel expressed as time in minutes.

Default Fuel/Time: Enter recommended landing fuel or recommended landing fuel expressed as time in minutes.

Alt Fuel/Time: Enter minimum alternate landing fuel or minimum alternate landing fuel expressed as time in minutes.

Etp Fuel/Time: Enter minimum ETP scenario landing fuel or minimum ETP scenario landing fuel expressed as time in minutes.

TimeCalc: Identifies how time conversion is completed. Options include:

• H - Using the hold fuel burn rate, 

• T - Using the top of descent fuel flow 

• or C - Use custom rate as defined in the next field.

Note: If you set the TimeCalc field to Custom, you must enter a time in minutes along with a fuel value in the Custom field (below)- based on an hourly rate. The resulting MLF value is based on the time and fuel value entered. This is the same behavior as taxi time/fuel.

Min Cruise Dist

Enter a minimum cruise distance. The default value is 0 (zero). If non-zero, the flight plan may not climb as high to result in a longer cruise distance. The system may prefer lower flight levels if the cruise distance of the flight does not adhere to the minimum cruise distance. This will not guarantee that the minimum distance will be satisfied because of minimum flight level restrictions.

RoundUp Fuel

This will round up the ramp fuel to an even number (100s).

Taxi

Enter the taxi fuel burn rate in units per hour.

Taxi Fuel Rate

Enter the taxi fuel rate. Options are fixed <F> or blank (per hour).

Advisory Fuel

Enter the amount of advisory fuel.

Note: If a value is entered, the next field will ask if the fuel is Optional.

Advisory Reason

Enter an advisory fuel reason. This can be a combination of letters and numbers and is unique to your airline. 

Field

Description

ID

The key parameter in the Aircraft Characteristics data file is this aircraft identification number. This can be any combination of three or four numbers or letters. In all modes except Add, you may use the aircraft registration to call up the required aircraft record (e.g. AC4).

Max FL

Set the maximum flight level the aircraft is capable of operating at. 

Most often it is set to the certified limit of the aircraft. If it is left blank, the system will plan the flights based on all available performance data, which in some cases can exceed service ceilings.

NAT MACH

Enter the fixed Mach number to be used for NAT tracks.

Payload Type

Enter the payload type. Options are (P)assenger or (C)argo.

ATC ALC

Enter the airline code to be used for ATC filing.

PAX

Enter the maximum number of passenger seats available.

CRW

Enter the total number of cockpit crew and flight attendants (if applicable) that are carried for normal operations.

JMP

Enter the number of extra crew (jump) seats that are available.

OTH

Enter the number of other seats that are available. This field is optional.

FILE BY

Enter the filing code for the method of filing with ICAO ATC. Options are by:

• registration <R>, 

• Tail/FIN <T>, or

• flight <F>.

EQUIP-TCAS/ACAS

Indicate whether the aircraft is:

• TCAS-equipped <T>, 

• TCASII equipped <2>, 

• ACAS-equipped <A>, or 

• none <N>.

AGCS EQUIPPED

Indicate whether to include AGCS-equipped aircraft in the report.

INS

Indicate whether the aircraft requires INS realignment. Options are yes <Y> or no <N>.

Note: This field is accessible only if a <J> has been entered in the Nav Codes.

CAT

Enter the instrument landing system category <1>, <2>, <3A>, <3B> or <3C>.

ADSB

Indicate whether the aircraft is ADS B-equipped. Options are yes <Y> or no <N>.

RNP Level

Enter the lowest RNP capability for airport procedures.

Receiver Type (RAIM/ADSB)

The ADSB check and RAIM calculation supports GPS specifications TCO C-129a, TCO C-145a, TCO C-146a and TCO C-196a receivers. The GPS receiver in the aircraft is compliant with one or more of these specifications. The receiver type must be set in Aircraft Characteristics or else a compute error will generate.

Baro. Aiding

The GPS receiver in the aircraft may have a physical connection to the Baro-altimeter or the FMS. If it does, select this checkbox. If you do not know if the GPS receiver is “baro-aided”, the safe option is to keep this checkbox deselected (No).

FDE Algorithm

Options are Yes, No or E (enroute only). 

• The service supports both FD (Fault Detection) and FDE (Fault Detection and Exclusion) RAIM algorithms. 

Note: Some airspaces, routes, or approaches may mandate that FDE be used for the RAIM prediction. 

Example: Selecting TCO-C145a or TCO-C146a receivers will automatically set the algorithm to FDE. 

• If you do not know which algorithm the GPS receiver is using, NAVBLUE recommends that you keep this checkbox deselected. 

• When set to E (enroute only), the FDE Algorithm is used only for the enroute portion of the flight.

SA (Selective Availability) Status

• Most modern GPS receivers will be set to use SA OFF. 

• In some cases the GPS receiver manufacturer will set the receiver to SA awareness. This means the GPS receiver will use the SA status of the GPS constellation - SA OFF. 

• If SA Status is not specified the system assumes the setting is SA ON.

RNP AR Check

If checked, an RNP AR check is performed provided that the aircraft is configured for checks and the airport data has been entered for landing airports only in a new Airport Configuration WebFOMS screen. The check occurs during RAIM validation. This requires a configuration change, contact support for more details.

SBAS Status

This turns on the Satellite-Based Augmentation System receive. Selecting this check box prompts the equipment to lead to an automatic result of "No Check Required".

OEW:

Enter the dry empty weight of the aircraft. Eighteen different values may be entered to reflect up to nine different configurations of the aircraft that can be selected in the flight plan screen. To support up to nine values and still maintain one screen, paging functionality is added to the OEW field. 

Example: Once a user has entered and selects their third value, the OEW field will go blank and the cursor will be placed in the first blank field of the OEW section. The first three weights have been saved to the record at this point. Now the user may either enter additional OEW weights or select enter. If the user wants to input additional weights, they can do so at this point. After the next three weights are entered and selected by the user, the fields will again be blanked out, indicating that the weights have been written to the record. Again, the user may now enter additional weights or select enter. Selecting enter will move the cursor to the MZFW field and the original three OEW weights will be displayed. Only one entry is mandatory.

CODE

Enter the operating empty weight code DOW (pantry code).

INDEX

Enter the operating empty weight index DOI (usually for CG).

CREW (version Flight Deck / Cabin

• In the first field, enter the number of flight deck crew members. 

• In the second field, enter the number of cabin crew members.

Field

Description

ID

The key parameter in the Aircraft Characteristics data file is the aircraft identification number. This can be any combination of three or four numbers or letters. In all modes except Add, you may use the aircraft registration to call up the required aircraft record.

Item 8

Enter Default Schedule type, Sched, Non-Sched, General, Military or Training (S, N, G, M or X).

Item 9

Enter Wake Turbulence category (J, H, M, L). The weight categories, based on the Certified Maximum Takeoff Weight of the aircraft, are:

• SUPER <J> for A380-800 and An225

• HEAVY <H> to indicate an aircraft type with a maximum certificated takeoff mass of 136,000 kg (300,000 lbs) or more.

• MEDIUM <M> to indicate an aircraft type with a maximum certificated takeoff mass of less than 136,000 kg (300,000 lbs), but more than 5,700 kg (12,500 lbs).

• LIGHT <L> to indicate an aircraft type with a maximum certificated takeoff mass of 5,700 kg (12 500 lbs) or less.

Note: Aircraft models or versions of the same type may have different maximum certified take-off weights (MTOW) because of their specific use of configuration; as a result, their Wake Turbulence Categories could be different.

Item 10a:  NAVIGATION CAPABILITY

Enter the appropriate codes for the equipment carried by the aircraft.

• <N> if no COM/NAV/approach aid equipment for the route to be flown is carried, or the equipment is unserviceable, or

• <S> if standard COM/NAV/approach aid equipment for the route to be flown is available and serviceable* AND/OR select one or more of the following to indicate the COM/NAV/approach aid equipment available and serviceable:

  • <C> LORAN C

  • <D> DME

  • <F> ADF

  • <G> GNSS**

  • <H> HF RTF

  • <I> INS    

  • <J> Data Link***

  • <K> MLS

  • <L> LS

  • <O> VOR

  • <R> RNP type certification****

  • <T> TACAN

  • <U> UHF

  • <V> VHF

  • <W> RVSM certification

  • <X> MNPS certification

  • <Y> CMNPS certification

  • <Z> Other equipment carried*****

*Standard equipment is considered to be VHF, ADF, VOR and ILS.
**If it is used, specify in the Other Information field Options box the other equipment carried using the fields identified as COM/ and/or NAV/, as appropriate. 

***If it is used then specify in the Other Information field Options box the equipment carried using the field identified as DAT/. As appropriate, use one or more letters.
****Inclusion indicates that an aircraft meets the RNP (e.g., RNPC airspace) type prescribed for the route segments, routes and/or area concerned.
*****When using <G> on an IFR Flight Plan, the GPS receiver must be approved in accordance with the requirements specified in Technical Standard Order (TSO) C-129 (Class A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 or C2). Also must be installed and approved in accordance with the appropriate sections of the Airworthiness Manual and operated in accordance with the approved flight manual or flight manual supplement. Pilots are encouraged to use <G> on VFR Flight Plans when using GPS to assist VFR navigation. TSO C-129 receivers are not mandatory for VFR flights.

Item 10b: SURVEILLANCE (SUR) CAPABILITY

Enter the appropriate transponder modes and ADS-B codes for the equipment carried by the aircraft.

Item 18 Code

Enter the NAV code that will show in ATC item 18.

Item 18 Entries

Enter the value for the given code and entries that will show up in the ATC plan under PBN/A1B1C1O1 for an example.

Item 19

R/ Radios: Enter the radio codes. Options are: 

• UHF <U>, 

• VHF <V> or

• emergency location beacon <E>.

S/ Survival: Enter the type of survival equipment. Options are:

• polar <P>, 

• desert <D>, 

• maritime <M>, and 

• jungle <J>.

J/ Jackets: Enter the applicable jacket codes. Options are:

• lights <L>, 

• fluorescent <F>, 

• UHF radio <U>, and 

• VHF radio <V>.

D/ Dinghies: Enter the following values: 

• the number of life rafts on board,

• the number of persons that can be carried in each,

• whether the dinghies are covered or not,

• the predominant color of the upper surface of the life rafts.

A/ A/C Color: Enter the main aircraft colors.

N/ Remarks: Enter any remarks regarding the aircraft's survival equipment.

Field

Description

ID

The key parameter in the Aircraft Characteristics data file is this aircraft identification number. This can be any combination of three or four numbers or letters. In all modes except Add, you may use the aircraft registration to call up the required aircraft record.

Min Rwy Length

Enter the minimum runway length in feet. This is used to improve filtering for suitable escape routes for airports. 

Note: Default is 5000 ft for large aircraft.

Max Rwy Tail (T-Wind) Wnd

Enter the maximum tailwind component. This value impacts automatic runway end selection for NFP features such as Max headwind and ALC Approach Minima. When set, NFP does not pick a runway for departure or arrival if the tail wind exceeds this value. 

Max Rwy Crs (X-Wind) Wind

Enter the maximum crosswind component. This value impacts automatic runway end selection for NFP features such as Max Crosswind and ALC Approach Minima. When set, NFP does not pick a runway for departure or arrival if the cross wind exceeds this value. 

Req Rwy Surface

Enter the required runway surface. Options are: 

• Enter <H> for hard, 

• <S> for soft, 

• <W> for water, or 

• <U> for undefined. 

This is used to improve filtering for suitable escape routes for airports.

Default Runway

Enter a default runway to be used in the Route Builder screen when a specific aircraft is used. Options are:

• <L> Longest Procedure, 

• <M> Max Head Wind, 

• <B> Best Route, or

• <N> None.

RTE QUAL

This field allows the user to specify what equipment is on board the aircraft. The route analysis process reads the data in this field and verifies that there is a match before using a particular route in the analysis process. 

Note: Refer to FOMS 305 for information regarding this field in the route building process. 

The valid entries are any text character, i.e., the field allows the user to define their own special equipment codes, thus the reason for allowing any text character to be entered. Maximum number of entries is 4 per aircraft.

MORA Radius

Enter the value of the MORA Radius. By default the MORA Radius is set to 5nm which means a 10NM total width.

Atc Alias

Add this alias to the default ATC addresses.

Fp Alias

Add this alias to the default flight package addresses.

Talt Max Dist

The maximum distance a takeoff alternate can be from the origin airport in the flight planning process. Options are: Specify the distance or leave the field blank.

• If a takeoff alternate is used in the flight planning process for the specified aircraft and the distance to that alternate is in excess of the value contained in the field, the user will receive an error message indicating the problem. 

Note: Refer to the flight plan section of the manual for specifics. 

• If the field is left blank, the default takeoff alternate distance is 500 nautical miles for a two-engine aircraft and 1000 miles for three- and four-engine aircraft.

Approach Spd Cat

Enter the approach speed category - A, B, C, D, E, or blank).

Iata Config Code

Enter the IATA Configuration Code.

Max Climb Grad

Enter maximum climb gradient (0.1% - 20%).

Normal Profile

Enter MORA normal driftdown key (or ? to search available options).

Icing Profile

Enter MORA Icing driftdown key (or ? to search available options).

ACN Min/Max

Enter the ACN minimum and maximum weights. Typically, the minimum would be the same as the operating empty weight, and the maximum would be the same as the ramp weight. 

Note: These values are compared with PCN values from FOMS Menu 105 (Airports Program) to determine airport suitability for the aircraft.

Oxygen Endurance

Enter the aircraft's oxygen endurance in minutes. You can have up to 4 FL and Time entries.

The oxygen endurance time refers to the amount of time the descent, in the event of depressurization, takes before the oxygen supply of the aircraft is depleted.

Refer to Escape Routes Requirements for further details on how Oxygen and Driftdown Escape Routes appear on the flight plan and how suitable airports are selected. 

Mora Dft Dwn (Method)

Options are <O>Off, <W>Weight reduce, <E>Escape Routes, and <A>Automatic. 

• If set to Off, NFP does not provide any escape routes. 

• If set to Weight Reduce, NFP penalizes aircraft weight to meet MORA requirements (Method 1). 

• If set to Escape Routes, NFP generates escape routes (O2 or drift down – Method 2) if MORA value is higher than 10,000 feet along the route of flight. 

• If set to Automatic, NFP generates escape routes and if unable to do so safely, reduces aircraft weight as per Method 1.

All Routes

Options are Yes or No. 

• If set to Yes, NFP checks MORA driftdown for all routes including alternates and reclear but not takeoff alternate. 

• If set to No, NFP only checks MORA for the main route.

Error on Driftdown

Options are Yes or No. 

• If set to Yes, NFP aborts a computation if a MORA check fails. 

• If set to No, NFP only provides a warning.

Driftdown Engines

Options are 1EO (one engine out), Off (off), Half (half engines). 

• If set to 1EO, NFP generates driftdown escape routes based on one engine out performance. 

• If set to Off, NFP does not generate any driftdown escape routes. 

• If set to Half, NFP generates driftdown escape routes based on the number of engines divided by 2. For 3 engine aircraft, H = 2 engines out. 

• If blank, the same behavior as Off occurs.

ACARS Enabled

Select whether the aircraft is ACARS enabled. Options are Yes or No.

Fp Fmt

Enter the ACARS flight plan format, e.g. 10.

Txt Fmt

Enter the ACARS Free Text format.

Gateway

Enter the ACARS network gateway address (SITA/ARINC or &Alias).

PWI CQ FLS

Enter the Climb predicted wind information flight levels .

(Proximity Warning Indicator)

PWI WQ FLS

Enter the Enroute predicted wind information flight levels. 

(Proximity Warning Indicator)

PWI WQ OAT

Choose to include outside air temperature, No, First level or Y. 

• If Y is selected, include a flight level. 

(Proximity Warning Indicator)

PWI DQ FLS

Enter the Descent predicted wind information flight levels. 

(Proximity Warning Indicator)

ACARS PWI Wpt Format

Options are <4>424, <F>Full, <I>UseInput

(Proximity Warning Indicator)

Field

Description

ID

The key parameter in the Aircraft Characteristics data file is the aircraft identification number. This can be any combination of three or four numbers or letters. In all modes except Add, you may use the aircraft registration to call up the required aircraft record.

Avoid Temp

Enter the threshold forecast temperature in °C. Forecast temperatures below this point will be avoided when generating a flight plan.

Avoid Turb EDR

Enter an EDR value to avoid; the system will attempt to avoid EDR values above the value entered when generating a flight plan. (0.0-2.0)

Turbulence Severity Range

The following three fields allow you to set a turbulence range. These values are displayed on the Flight Plan (if selected).

• Light Turb TDR: Enter a light turbulence value - must be between 0.0 and 2.0. This value cannot be higher than the Moderate Turbulence value.

• Moderate Turb TDR: Enter a moderate turbulence value - must be between 0.0 and 2.0. This value cannot be lower than the light value or higher than the severe turbulence value.

• Severe Turb TDR: Enter a light turbulence value - must be between 0.0 and 2.0. This value cannot be lower than the light value or the moderate turbulence value.

Example below for different aircraft types.

Avoid Icing PPI

Avoid Icing Percent Power Increase (0.0 – 2.0) above the entered value.

Icing Acft Cat

Icing PPI aircraft category. Options are:

• L = light 

• M = medium

• H = heavy 

• If this field is blank, the NFP system looks at the Item 9 setting (wake turbulence category).

Vert Velocity

Avoid thunderstorms exceeding the vertical velocity in meters/second (m/s) entered.

Fly above by / Fly over Tops

Allow flight above thunderstorm by this value in hundreds of feet.

Wind Source

This will override the default wind source set in Airline Code Parameters (FOMS 170). 

Options are:

• <U>UKM, 

• <N>NWS,

• <T>Televent, or 

• blank

Auto Weather Chart / WxChart Buffer FL

This field adds charts from a range of available FLs to the Flight Package. 

Example: A value of 50 with a cruise level of FL390 automatically adds charts FL340, FL390 and FL420. This value will override the value set in airline code parameters screens.

Auto Weather Chart / WxChart Specific FL

This field adds a specific chart. 

Example: A value of 100 will automatically add a chart for FL100. This value will override the value set in airline code parameters screens.

Auto Weather Chart / WxChart Buffer Time

This buffer allows you to decrease or extend the time range when auto-selecting weather charts to add to the flight package. 

• A positive number adds more charts

• A negative number adds less charts

Example: If the flight time was from 0900 to 1300, a buffer would extend the time range to 0600 to 1600. This value will override the value set in airline code parameters screens.

ENR APU Burn/Hr

The amount of fuel burned while the aircraft is airborne. Auxiliary power unit fuel per hour. 

The Fuel value is entered in LBS/KGS per hour. Fuel value entered here is multiplied by the flight’s EET and included in the total burn for the flight.

ETP APU Burn/Hr

Equal Time Point APU fuel, included in the ETP scenario.

Options are: Calculate, Fixed, and blank.

• When set to Calculate in the Method field in the ETP Scenarios database, the N-FP system multiples the ETP APU fuel entry (LBS/KGS) from the Aircraft Characteristics database and multiplies it by the EET between the ETP point and the ETP alternates. This fuel is not included in the ETP required fuel for the selected scenario(s).

• If set to Fixed, a Burn value in LBS/KGS per hour will have to be entered. This fuel will be included in the ETP required fuel for the selected scenario(s).

Ground APU

This is the fuel burned while the aircraft is on the ground or at the gate. Ground APU fuel can be displayed on a separate line in the format’s fuel burn block under required fuel as it is expected to be used prior to takeoff.

• Burn/Hr: In this example, the Gnd APU is 440 LBS/KGS per hour. Notice the APU line item under the minimum fuel required line.

• Time Before and After: Amount of time the auxiliary power unit is running on the ground before and after refueling.

Values entered are taken into consideration for multi-leg tankering calculations to determine how much fuel is required.

• The flight plan format will show an increase in the taxi out fuel if the Ground APU time between refuel and Taxi Out is greater than zero. These fields are displayed on the flight plan with Taxi fuel parameters.

Customer Code 1, 2, 3

These are display only fields. Enter an alphanumeric digit to be used as reference for the aircraft.

NTMId

Enter the NOTAM (auxiliary) filter key.

ETP-POL

Enter the ETP Policy (A-Z) for this aircraft. This field is intended to allow you specify a policy for those aircraft that are non-standard.

If left blank, the system will default to the policy specified in the Master Parameter file.

TLS

Time Limited System time (in minutes) and used for ETOPS Beyond 180 minutes.

ETP -F/L

Enter the flight level to be used for the ETP calculation.

CFSS

Cargo Fire Suppression System time (in minutes) and used for ETOPS Beyond 180 minutes.

ETP-SPD

Enter ETP Cruise speed (LRC, IAS330, etc).

EEPEXP Min

Enter the EEP/EXP time in minutes.

ETOPS Min (Time)

Enter the ETOPS time in minutes.

ETOPS -TAS

Enter ETOPS True Air Speed.

ETOPS - Dist

Enter the ETOPS distance. ETOPS Time and ETOPS Distance fields are optional. 

If left blank, the system generates circles based on values defined in the ETOPS-Min and ETOPS-TAS fields.

Hide

Hide ETOPS and do not display on the flight plan. Options are <Y> yes or <N> no.

RestrictETP

Disallow ETP if its outside ETOPS. Options are: 

• <Y>Warn, 

• <N>Off, or 

• <E>Error

ETOPS -Time/ETOPS -Distance/ETOPS -Beyond

These fields are for the maximum number of minutes or the distance that the aircraft may diverge from an alternate during ETOPS flights, and the TAS that has been specified for use in calculating maximum distance from alternate for ETOPS flights based on a twin-engine aircraft.

• Selecting Y for Beyond enables the ETOPS Beyond 180 minutes function. Note: At least one scenario must have a value above 180 and be enabled for Beyond to be used for ETOPS Beyond 180 Minute operations, and one or both of the TLS (Time Limited System) or CFSS (Cargo Fire Suppression System) time fields must be filled in. 

• The maximum value for these fields is 999.

Field

Description

ID

The key parameter in the Aircraft Characteristics data file is the aircraft identification number. This can be any combination of three or four numbers or letters. In all modes except Add, you may use the aircraft registration to call up the required aircraft record.

====Minima====

ILS LTS

Approved for ILS LTS? Options are (Y/N).

CAT I SA

Approved for CAT I SA? Options are (Y/N).

CAT II SA

Approved for CAT II SA? Options are (Y/N).

CAT II SA

Approved for CAT II OTS? Options are (Y/N). Note: SA - Special Authorization, OTS - Other Than Standard

ARFF Level

Specify the ICAO Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting Code (ARFF) for an aircraft. Accepted values range from 1 to 10.

Comments

Enter any details about the aircraft in free text; the character limit is 108. 

Note: There is currently no interaction between this field and any other program.

Updated

This field indicates when the last change in the fuel consumption bias is made, and is automatically filled in.

Src

Your initials are automatically added to indicate that you made the latest updates.