ForeFlight Expands IFR Coverage to Canada!

Posted on August 3, 2011 by foreflight

We are thrilled to announce that ForeFlight has expanded to Canada! Over the past year, we worked alongside NAV CANADA to add IFR en-route charts and terminal procedures to ForeFlight Mobile for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. ForeFlight is the first app for Apple iOS products that provides sanctioned in-flight access to NAV CANADA charting products. Canadian charting is supported in version 4.1 of ForeFlight Mobile, which is available for download today from the iTunes App Store.

The Canadian IFR charting products are available through a new ForeFlight Canada subscription plan. Pilots new to ForeFlight can purchase a subscription from within ForeFlight Mobile or directly from the ForeFlight website. Pilots who already subscribe to ForeFlight Mobile can make changes to their subscription and add the ForeFlight Canada option at http://www.foreflight.com/store/canada.php.

A big win over the past year in working with NAV CANADA is that the digital charts are authorized for use in IFR flights, subject to Part VI of the Canadian Aviation Regulations. Canadian operators who wish to use ForeFlight and its NAV CANADA charting products can obtain authorization by following the guidance materials contained in FAA Order 8900, OPSPEC/MSPEC/LOA A061, and FAA Advisory Circular 120-76A.

The ForeFlight Canada subscription plan costs $149.99 per year, with special plans and pricing available for corporate flight departments and operators purchasing multiple subscriptions. ForeFlight is working with NAV CANADA on changes to its Visual Navigation Charts, as well as the Aviation Flight Supplement, so that those products can also make their way onto iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch devices.

ForeFlight Mobile 4.1 is available in the App Store for download. This update also includes a new Devices screen for viewing attached accessories, support for the Aspen Connected Panel, and bug fixes. We recommend all users update to the latest version.

A copy of the press release is available here: ForeFlight Canada Press Release

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ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 Lands in App Store

Posted on May 2, 2011 by foreflight

ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 is available for download today in the iTunes App Store! This release takes ForeFlight forward in delightful ways and lays the groundwork for brilliant features to come in 2011.

As we developed version 4, we set out these goals and themes:

  • Add airspace and A/FD data: provide the chart margin data and make the airport pages of the “green” A/FDs accessible. Provide this information in an interesting way. Include airspace information, MOA operating hours and frequencies, tower hours, and more.
  • Improve instrument plate organization and productivity: make it simple for both VFR and IFR pilots to organize sets of plates and airport diagrams for trips or practice sessions, and make switching between a plate, airport details page, or map simple.
  • Improve the way pilots interact with the map: allow a pilot to tap anywhere on the map for information on airspace, MOAs, alert and warning areas, or airports.
  • Radically improve the navigation log: provide the pilot more inflight intelligence about trip progress and allow customization of the dashboard/HUD to show desired trip information like ETEs, ETAs, course information, or other important stats (taking the route being flown into account). Auto-sequence waypoints and visually distinguish previous, current, and future trip legs. Make the new navlog and dashboard design smart and sexy.
  • Introduce personal waypoints: give the backcountry pilot, a Gulf helicopter pilot, or CFI flying to the practice area the ability to add custom waypoints and use them in flight plans. Let the pilot configure waypoints from the map or import their own database of waypoints.
  • Performance, performance, performance: make everything faster and smoother.
  • Make ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 a platform for the future: put the plumbing in place for the big features we plan to release in 2011 and cut ties with older, slower technology.
We’ve hit each of these goals in ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 and the app is ready for you to take it around the block. The Pilots’ Guide to ForeFlight  is updated with the latest ForeFlight 4 features.  A media kit including high resolution screenshots is also available on our website. All the version 4 details follow!

Integrated FAA A/FD

There’s just some airport information that is only available in those green A/FDs, so we decided to include them. Now appearing on an airports page is a new segment titled “A/FD”. Click that and you’ll see the relevant page for that airport from the FAA’s A/FD. If the airport is big enough to have warranted multiple pages in the book, simply swipe left or right to get to the next page.

All New Navlog

The new navlog design is sexy, sexy, sexy. Pilots have written in frequently asking “how hard is it to include ETE and ETA!”. Well, ETE and ETA are not hard to compute. However, taking the route and active leg into account and, more importantly, displaying that information in ForeFlight style took a bit of extra chiseling.

Now available from the Maps page is a new, wider navlog that shows important metrics like summary trip information, leg times and distances remaining, and ETA. Current leg is shown in black, previous legs are faded, and you can fly a leg or fly direct to a waypoint by tapping the new arrow button shown on each leg.

Configurable Dashboard

“Make it so that I can configure my dashboard”. Done! Tap on any of the blocks in the dashboard and select the instrument you want displayed. You can choose from fifteen different instrument types, including ETE to waypoint and destination, ETA to waypoint and destination, cross-track error, bearing to next waypoint or destination, Zulu time, GPS Accuracy, and more.

Interactive Map with Airspace Information

Need to know what airspace you are coming up on or if that MOA is active? Tap within an airspace boundary or special use airspace like a MOA, warning, alert, or prohibited area and all the required details are displayed. Want to know the details of that airport ahead? Simply tap on the airport and a popover is displayed with the airport information and a button to hop to that Airport’s details.

Plates Binders

The new Plates tab on the iPad makes it simple for both VFR and IFR pilots to organize sets of plates and airport diagrams for trips or practice sessions.  Easily add new plates to your binder from the Plates tab or when viewing a plate from Airports. Search for plates by keywords, like “KMIA ILS”.  Create multiple binders to store your trips and easily toggle between them.

Personal Waypoints

Flying in the backcountry, Alaska, Africa, Gulf of Mexico, or even to the local practice area often means flying to places that aren’t specifically marked on a sectional or enroute chart. With the new personal waypoints feature, you can import a large set of waypoints from a text file or use the map to add a waypoint for any location you touch. Give that personal waypoint a name and you can include it in your route search. Download the Pilot’s Guide for instructions.

Video

We’ve made a short video that goes over the new additions and shows a quick demo of it in action.

Get it Today!

ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 is a big step forward, providing more information and content than ever before, more ways to improve productivity and organize your materials before a flight, a new navlog and configurable dashboard for monitoring progress, and even more performance and stability.  All of our screenshots show the iPad, but these great new features are available on the iPhone version, too.  The only exception is the Plates tab, which is only available on the iPad due to screen size requirements.

ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 is a free update for existing subscribers.  Click here to learn how to update your app.

For new users, ForeFlight Mobile HD 4 is a free download from the App Store and comes with a 30 day trial.

Thanks for making ForeFlight part of your flight bag and enjoy the update!

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ForeFlight 3.9 with TrueTaxi, TruePlates – Now on iTunes App Store

Posted on March 3, 2011 by foreflight

The latest update to ForeFlight Mobile HD is now available for download on iTunes App Store. This update includes our new TrueTaxi and TruePlates features, which provide own-ship position on airport taxi diagrams! Under the hood, this remarkably elegant new capability receives geo-referencing inputs provided through our license of ChartData from Seattle Avionics, our newest partner. The result is a fantastic experience on iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

TrueTaxi and TruePlates features are provided as part of our new ForeFlight HD Pro plan, which is an affordable upgrade from the standard ForeFlight HD plan. With this optional plan, your aircraft’s location appears directly on the plate with a blue, pulsating icon. At the bottom of the screen, we show GPS readouts for groundspeed, altitude, track, and accuracy. There is also a faint blue box overlaid on the plate to indicate which areas are able to show own-ship position. Your aircraft will only show up when it is within this area.

New customers can purchase the Pro package online for $149.99/year, which includes the traditional ForeFlight HD subscription and the new TrueTaxi and TruePlates features. Existing customers upgrading to ForeFlight HD Pro will have any remaining time under their current subscription pro-rated and credited towards the purchase of ForeFlight HD Pro. One subscription will work on one iPad and one iPhone or iPod touch.

We’re still offering the same base subscription for $74.99/year with all of the features you expect: bulk downloads, NACO plates, moving map, geo-referenced VFR sectionals, geo-referenced IFR enroute charts, radar, satellite, and more. Upgrading is optional. You can upgrade at any time to the Pro plan in order to see your aircraft overlaid on approach plates and taxi diagrams.

Other big features in ForeFlight Mobile HD 3.9:

  • Brightness adjustment – the iPad doesn’t get dim enough for night ops, so this option allows for even further dimming of the screen
  • In-app Settings – a new Settings view is now available to allow for quicker access to general preferences.  On the iPad it is under the More view.
  • GPS HUD on iPhone – the Maps view on iPhone now supports showing groundspeed, track, etc. just like the iPad version.
  • GPS HUD on Plate viewer – when viewing a geo-referenced approach plate or taxi diagram you will now see the GPS readouts as well
  • Aircraft view for iPad – the More view now also supports editing Aircraft and selected your default aircraft for use when calculating route performance on Maps
  • Additional airport data is now shown under the More option on the Airports view

We’ve also fixed up a few issues from the previous version:

  • Searching for and airway with a single digit no longer gets confused with Canadian NDBs
  • Route line alignment has been improved when at max zoom on Maps
  • New Settings options:
    • disable auto-hide of the toolbar and GPS readouts on the Plate view
    • only show Airway bends in Maps, not all waypoints
  • Smarter auto-selection of airway entry/exit points

Visit our web site to learn more about geo-referenced plates and diagrams and watch our video introducing the new features. Also, make sure to download our user manual, the Pilot’s Guide to ForeFlight Mobile.

ForeFlight Mobile HD 3.9 is available from the App Store as a free download and includes a 30 day trial subscription. Take it for a spin today!

Why Did You Add Geo-referenced Plates and Diagrams?

In 2010, we didn’t believe the internal iPhone GPS performed well enough to warrant enabling geo-referenced approach plates, so we punted. When customers asked us why geo-referencing was not available, the reply was simple: not ready for prime time.

In November of 2010, the first external, Apple-approved GPS accessories hit the market. Even with those, we uncovered issues after hours of flight and taxi testing by ForeFlight team members and our elite beta test team. We worked directly with one external GPS hardware provider – Bad Elf – to make firmware changes that brought device performance to a satisfactory level.

The firmware changes, combined with a range of software rules we implemented to account for iOS behaviors, resulted in a solution that we think is ready for customers. And, you were all very, very loud: you want geo-referenced approach plates.

As our new partner Seattle Avionics might attest to – after having witnessed patiently our development process – the level of attention to detail in this implementation is high. We went through dozens of iterations and polished this new capability as best we could before making it generally available. We believe it is the best solution available for iOS devices on the market today.

All said, it’s important to provide a word of caution. Geo-referenced plates on an iPad – even with external GPS accessories – are not a suitable substitute for approach certified avionics. Use good judgement in determining where, when, and under what conditions it fits in your workflow.  And as the AOPA Saftey Foundation’s iPanel spoof reminds us all, fly the airplane.

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ForeFlight HD 3.8 with Terminal Procedure Printing, Offline NOTAMs, and Improved Airway Support

Posted on December 29, 2010 by foreflight

ForeFlight Mobile HD version 3.8 is now available for your iPad and iPhone! Download it today from the App Store and grab the latest update to the user manual.

Here is a rundown of the new features and bug fixes in 3.8:

  • Print Instrument Procedures with iOS 4.2 AirPrint (iPad only).  Only a small number of printers are supported now, but Apple is working to add more in the future.
  • NOTAMs are saved to your device after viewing.
  • Native city- or airport name-based search – no internet connection required. Put quotes around multi-word queries like “San Diego”.
  • Redesigned N-number/aircraft search with improved Aircraft views.
  • Soft-lock on procedures view now locks rotation on iPad, since the iPad lock-switch is now a mute switch in iOS 4.2.
  • iOS 4.2 compatibility with better fast-app switching support for iPad.
  • Improved airway support
    • Detection of intersection automatically when two airways put side by side
    • Automatically uses closest VOR on airway as exit/entry point when airport is adjacent to an airway in a route
    • Better support for joining airway to SID/STAR
  • Improved SID/STAR support (e.g. fixed issue where some waypoints would repeat).
  • Better performance in flight plan filing form on iOS 4.2 and fix for possible crash when exiting form on iPhone.
  • Fixed bug where BYOP procedures are not accessible from Favorites and Recents.
  • Fixed bug where maps would get clipped after rotating iPad on another view.
  • Fixed location tracking bug.
  • New settings (see ForeFlight section in iPad Settings app)
    • Change type of aircraft shown on Maps when in motion.
    • Disable auto-hide of toolbar in full screen approach plate viewer.
  • Fixed issue preventing a tap of the top status/time bar from scrolling to top of view in Airport details (iPhone).

The Pilot’s Guide to ForeFlight Mobile

We’ve updated our user manual, the Pilot’s Guide to ForeFlight Mobile HD.  Click here to get the latest version of the manual.

How to Get 3.8

New to ForeFlight?  Download ForeFlight Mobile HD today from the App Store!

Already have the app?  Follow these instructions for updating the app on your iPad or iPhone.

Need a group plan or backup subscription? View group pricing here.

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ForeFlight Mobile HD 3.7 with Airport Fuel Prices, Airways, SID/STAR, Direct-To, and iPhone Touch Planning

Posted on October 23, 2010 by foreflight

ForeFlight Mobile HD version 3.7 is now available! Download it today from the App Store and grab the latest version of the user manual.

This update is a big one, delivering a breadth of new functionality to both the iPad and iPhone. Included are features we have all wanted for a while – like airway ‘cracking’, airport fuel prices, and FBO comments. Also, our iPhone-only customers have patiently awaited the iPad’s touch planning capabilities.  Today, their wait is over – this release includes fully integrated touch planning on the iPhone. The first time we saw it, we were pretty excited. Hopefully it blows your hair back a bit!

We took our time with each of these big new features and added some very ForeFlight-esque user experience gems along the way. We also polished up some of our screens, giving them a fresh face to improve contrast and readability.

On our team and in the ForeFlight community, we’re using iPads and iPhones more often than browsers now when planning flights. The new features in version 3.7 bring even more resources to your devices, allowing you to further cut the cord from your browser and desktop computer. With the introduction of iPhone and iPad airport fuel prices, airway support, FBO comments, and more in version 3.7, you will be more productive with ForeFlight HD than ever before!

First, here’s a short video introducing the big new features:


Fuel Prices and Fuel Updates

We’re really excited to bring fuel prices to ForeFlight Mobile, and we’ve added this feature in a very ForeFlight way. Not only do we provide 100LL/JetA fuel prices for thousands of FBOs, but ForeFlight customers can submit their own price updates. Coverage is awesome, and includes more than 2,300 FBOs across the US and Canada, showing prices in the appropriate currency and measurement units.

We built two new fuel price maps – a 100LL map and a Jet-A map – that show you the lowest prices at any given airport and, via some statistical magic, dynamically color code the prices region.  It shows what’s most economical (green), average (yellow), and expensive (red) according to the region in which the FBO is located. Expensive in Texas may be cheap in California, so ForeFlight dynamically adjusts the display for regional differences.


FBO and Airport Comments

ForeFlight users are some of the smartest pilots on the runway. Learn from their experience by viewing comments for an airport or an FBO.  Have something to share?  Submit your own comment about an airport or FBO from inside the app. We review all comments to ensure they are courteous and professional, and the usually appear in the app within 24 hours.


Airway and SID/STAR Support

ForeFlight Mobile HD now supports airways (victor, jet, etc). The app supports complex, multi-runway departures, entrances and exits from airways,  and even allows round-trip-editing with touch planning. Have you ever wanted to see where an entire airway runs from and to? Search for just an airway identifier to see all its elements on the map (try V16 in the Maps view) or include an airway in the middle of your routing.  Airways require a start and end point when used in a route, for example: MOONN V90 DKK

3.7 also includes SID/STAR support in the Routes and Maps view. For example, type in KCLT 36R.MERIL5 RDU J209 ORF J121 SIE CAMRN4 KJFK. Want to see what other pilots are flying? View cleared ATC routes from a departure to a destination, and cycle through each of the available options to see the route of flight with all airway and waypoints drawn on the map.

Always refer to the official arrival/departure plate from the Airport view, as the ForeFlight Maps view is not able to show vectors, altitude info, and certain other details you’ll need.  If an arrival or departure requires a particular runway input, you will be prompted to provide it, with an example.


Revamped Maps with Direct-To and iPhone Touch Planning

We rewrote our map engine to make it more flexible and support some great new features.  Direct-To is available from a waypoint or directly from touch planning.  Just tap the direct-to D to get a direct-to-routing. You can also jump directly from a waypoint to the Airports details page by tapping the blue > icon.

With 3.7, touch planning is now available for the iPhone.  This works just like touch planning on the iPad – we were all blown away the first time we saw it in action.


Simplified Download Settings and Turbo Mode

The download settings are now greatly simplified: just pick your regions once, the data you care about once, then hit Download to grab the data. You no longer need to select individual states within each catalog. If you’re upgrading from an earlier version, all of your settings will be migrated to the new system.

Users with an iPad, iPhone 3GS, or iPhone 4 can take advantage of turbo downloads. Depending on your connection speed, up to four downloads will run at the same time. And no matter what device you’re running on, VFR and IFR charts will install much faster than earlier versions – usually in under a second!

Other Enhancements:

  • More runway details including displaced threshold lengths, runway headings, and more.
  • ATC routes now load in Maps when selected.
  • Edit button on File & Brief to easily delete flight plants.
  • Maps button on File & Brief to jump over to maps and visualize your route of flight.
  • Sunrise/set times now honor the “show local times” on/off setting.
  • Over 60 new high-res images for iPhone 4′s retina screen.  Almost all of the images have been converted now.
  • Freshened the design of the airport, METAR, TAF, and FBO views for a cleaner and more compact look.
  • Support for DUATS’ degree and min lat/lon in Routes/Maps. Ex: 3006/-08045
  • Support for a new waypoint/bearing/distance format in Routes/Maps.  Ex: GSO230015
  • ScratchPad uses slightly smaller line when drawing.

Bug fixes:

  • Better handling of downloads with low disk space.
  • Faster deletion of downloads.
  • Fixed bug on Maps where current location indicator and pop-ups appeared beneath route line.
  • Fixed bug on main iPhone screen where badge indicator had black background instead of a pretty shadow.
  • Fixed bug on iPhone with per-airport downloads of procedures.

The Pilot’s Guide to ForeFlight Mobile

We’ve updated our user manual, the Pilot’s Guide to ForeFlight Mobile HD.  Click here to get the latest version of the manual.

How to Get 3.7

New to ForeFlight?  Download ForeFlight Mobile HD today from the App Store!

Already have the app?  Follow these instructions for updating the app on your iPad or iPhone.

Need a group plan or backup subscription? View group pricing here.

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Aviation Touch Planning on the iPad with ForeFlight Mobile HD 3.6

Posted on July 23, 2010 by foreflight

Attention pilots: the “Touch Planning” release is here! ForeFlight Mobile HD v3.6 is now available in the App Store. Tap out flight plans in seconds with your fingers, bend routes around weather, move waypoints, delete waypoints, and more. “Touch Plan” your flight to Airventure, send us a screenshot, and we’ll post it on the ForeFlight Facebook Page!

Please note: touch planning is an iPad-only feature for now. We hope to add it to the iPhone version in a future release.

Touch Planning Instructions [Video]:
* Tap-and-hold anywhere on the map until a pop-up appears. Select the lat/lon location under your finger, or select one of the nearby locations.
* Tap-and-hold somewhere else on the map and select the location. This location will be added to your route.
* Tap-and-hold the route line until it changes color, then drag to break and bend the route.
* Tap-and-hold a location marker to move it or delete it.
* Rinse and repeat for silky smooth flight plans!

This version also introduces “Bring your Own Procedures” (BYOP). Build a zip file of PDFs you want to display within an Airport’s procedures list – terminal procedures from your home country, specialized kneeboard PDFs, airport diagrams showing incursion hotspots, classified military guides, or procedures from other digital sources. Any PDF is supported. View the ForeFlight Support web site for full instructions.

Additional Features in ForeFlight Mobile v3.6
✣ Fast app switching for iPhone OS 4
✣ Enhanced graphics for iPhone 4′s retina display
✣ GPS position tracking activates on Maps view automatically now
✣ New “Cockpit” button on moving map to engage the heads up display (iPad-only); targeting location now toggles auto-center mode
✣ Worldwide international navigational aids (search for country code, a colon, then the navaid IDENT, e.g. “CA:2Z”)
✣ In Settings, select whether to use the white street basemap or dark basemap when viewing Radar and Satellite Maps
✣ In Settings, select your preferred latitude/longitude display format
✣ Enhanced FBO fuel availability information
✣ Gulf of Mexico block navigation data for Bristow, PHI, and other GOM transport providers supporting gulf drilling operations

Ready to join the iPad Aviation Revolution?  ForeFlight Mobile HD is a free download in the App Store and includes the first 30 days of your subscription.

Already a ForeFlighter?  View instructions for how to update to the app.

Important Note for Users Updating to v3.6.
After updating the app, please check the Accounts screen to make sure your expiration date is correct. We are seeing an occasional bug during app updates where the account information is lost. If this happens, please sign in using your ForeFlight Account information.

Please be assured we are doing everything we can to track down this bug and get it fixed. If you run into any problems, email us and we will get you back up and running ASAP.

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Moving Map and Routes on the iPad, ForeFlight Mobile 3.5

Posted on June 8, 2010 by foreflight

The iPad Aviation era keeps getting better. ForeFlight Mobile HD 3.5 is now in the App Store, bringing our moving map, heads-up display to the iPad! Tap the locate button to see your aircraft position and track. Users who enjoyed spitballing routes with the iPhone version will be happy to find this integrated into the ‘Maps’ tab on the iPad. With v3.5, all of the functionality in the iPhone version is available on the iPad! We also improved the radar and satellite on both the iPhone and iPad, with color-coded freezing precipitation, county-level warnings, and a new visible+infrared composite satellite.

New users can download ForeFlight Mobile 3.5 HD from the App Store today!
Already have the app? Click here for instructions on how to update to v3.5.

ForeFlight Slip Maps™ on the iPad and iPhone are amazing, with full-screen HD NEXRAD, satellite, flight rules, sectionals and more. Version 3.5 brings these to the next level, with killer new features done ‘ForeFlight Style’!

  • Moving-map, heads up display for iPad with groundspeed, track, altitude, and GPS accuracy
  • Locator icon changes to an aircraft when track available
  • Animated radar and satellite for iPad
  • New visible+infrared composite satellite
  • Airport-level radar and satellite (see cells on or around the airport)
  • Redesigned artwork for lightning, mesocyclone, tornado, and hail activity
  • New base-map for radar and satellite providing street and airport level detail

With v3.5, routes are fully integrated into the iPad version. Instead of making routes a standalone window like the iPhone, we took advantage of the huge iPad screen and integrated them into our Maps. Search for a route in the top-right of Maps tab to see both the route line and a navlog overlay with detailed information about distance, course, fuel burn, and time. Want to see more of the map? Just tap the minimize button and the navlog gets out of your way!

  • View the navlog with ETE, fuel, distance, and headwind component
  • One tap to file a flight plan, look up ATC routes, or reverse the route
  • Favorite routes and recent routes
  • Remembers and displays your last saved route after you exit
  • Great circle route drawing
  • Routes can now include lat/lon values like 32.3N/82.2W

Version 3.5 is also stock full of performance improvements and bug fixes:

  • Improved memory management
  • iPhone OS 4 compatibility
  • Fixed a bug that could cause a download to fail
  • Fixed a crash caused by zooming on long routes
  • Fixed a bug that caused blank tiles on sectional maps

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ForeFlight Mobile 3 Takes Flight on the iPhone

Posted on December 16, 2009 by foreflight

We are proud to announce ForeFlight Mobile 3, the latest edition of our flagship pilot productivity and Preflight Intelligence™ app for iPhone and iPod.  ForeFlight Mobile 3 was redesigned  from nose to tail. With innovations like HD NEXRAD Slip Maps™, future flight plan filing, and a new and flexible download manager, v3.0 lets you plan and visualize your flight faster and easier than ever before. Our improved weather presentation technologies improve pre-flight situational awareness and increase pilot confidence, helping us realize the ForeFlight vision of improving safety and making pilots more productive.  Hundreds of new features and a completely redesigned user interface make ForeFlight Mobile 3 the must-have companion for any student, private, instrument, commercial, airline transport, or military pilot.

New features in ForeFlight Mobile 3:

  • Brand new Slip Maps™ with slideable, zoomable maps for weather and charts.
  • Flight routes displayed over animated, QICP-certified  HD NEXRAD and satellite.
  • Full screen, downloadable, GPS-integrated moving map VFR sectionals.
  • Full screen, downloadable, GPS-integrated moving map IFR high and low enroute charts.
  • One-tap Intelligent Flight Briefings via DUATS with smart refresh, briefing email confirmations, and archival on ForeFlight servers for extra assurance.
  • Redesigned route planning with NAVAID support and wind-corrected flight plans.
  • New flight plan filing system with future flight plans more than 24 hours in the future, favorite aircraft, offline access, and automatic import from ForeFlight 2.
  • Brand new download manager with downloads of airport diagrams, procedures, and sectionals for the entire United States. Choose to download procedures for offline use one at a time, by airport, or by state.
  • Ability to pause, resume, and cancel downloads.
  • Redesigned airport interface for faster access to airports, weather, and imagery.
  • Global airport database with the best information from the FAA, AOPA Airport Directory, and Universal Weather and Aviation’s UVTripPlanner airport directories.
  • Redesigned NOTAMs organized by airport, TFRs, and regional ARTCC.
  • Local storage of all airport procedures, charts, briefings, and flight plans so you can view them offline.

ForeFlight Mobile 3 is the culmination of many months of hard work and collaborations with partners.  All of the new features are based on feedback from our passionate user community. We kept the best parts of ForeFlight Mobile 2.4, redesigned the rest from the ground up, and optimized everything. We spent months sweating pixels, testing out on the runway, and designing to fit the pilot workflow – all to create what we believe is the best aviation app for the iPhone.

ForeFlight would like to specially welcome aboard our newest partner, Weather Decision Technologies, whom we collaborated with for the past year to develop the technology that powers our new weather Slip Maps™. Thanks also go to our partners at the AOPA, Universal Weather and Aviation, and RunwayFinder.com helping us make ForeFlight Mobile 3 possible.

In July 2008, ForeFlight Mobile 2 launched alongside Apple’s new App Store to critical acclaim, becoming the highest rated iPhone aviation product in the App Store and a top five seller in the App Store’s weather category. In addition to a comprehensive airport directory, ForeFlight Mobile provides color-coded METARs, TAFs, winds aloft, infrared satellite, NOTAMs, graphical TFRs, FBOs, and flight plan filing.  ForeFlight users are part of a passionate community of aviators that enjoy the benefits of real-time support, quick fixes, frequent updates, and personable service. ForeFlight Mobile 3 builds upon this legacy of excellence, bringing more data, brilliant HD NEXRAD, and visual airport intelligence to pilots around the world.

ForeFlight Mobile 3 is available immediately in the iPhone App Store as a free download and includes the first 30 days of a ForeFlight Mobile Subscription. Subscription prices range from $49.99 for the first year for existing ForeFlight customers to $74.99 for the first year for new customers.

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ForeFlight Mobile v2.4 Launches in the iPhone App Store

Posted on August 27, 2009 by foreflight

Routes and METARs in ForeFlight Mobile v2.4

We’re proud to announce ForeFlight Mobile v2.4, now available in the iPhone App Store.  This is the latest update to our flagship app, and it’s a big one!

  • Newly designed METAR view that makes viewing encoded, decoded, and nearby METARs easier; METARs are now viewable when offline.
  • Newly designed TAF view that elegantly organizes translations and highlights the current forecast period.  TAFs are now viewable when offline.
  • Newly designed Winds Aloft view that elegantly organizes wind and temperature data and highlights the current forecast.  Winds Aloft are now viewable when offline.
  • New personal preference settings that lets you select units for wind speed, temperature, pressure, and visibility.  Great for international customers or customers that prefer viewing temperature in Fahrenheit.
  • New personal preference setting to hide old TAF translations.
  • New feature that saves the last airport displayed and reloads that airport the next time you restart ForeFlight.
  • Weather for your recently viewed and favorite airports is downloaded and stored on device automatically.
  • New trip estimator that accepts airport identifiers, ground speed, and fuel burn and computes ETE, burn, total distance, leg distance, leg ETE, and leg fuel burn; displays leg and trip details in a flight log view that includes current flight rules for each stop.
  • Enhanced search interface that accepts airport identifiers, ground speed, and fuel burn and estimates trip details.
  • New routes view that provides access to previously estimated trips when offline.
  • Updated recents and favorites views to show the current altimeter setting and temperature/dewpoint for each airport, when available.
  • New TFR imagery collection in the Images catalog
  • New “help bubbles” that show how to use the Search view
  • DUATS account settings (optional) – use your own DUATS account for filing flight plans
  • Greatly improved performance
  • Many bug fixes, including a common flight plan filing form crash bug

Already a user?  Like all v2.x releases, this is a free update.  Learn how to update the app on your iPhone.

Ready to come on board?  ForeFlight Mobile v2.4 is available in the iPhone App Store for $74.99.

We couldn’t be more proud of ForeFlight Mobile!  It took months of development and testing to get every detail right, but we’re confident our users will enjoy the new standard in Preflight Intelligence™.

TAFs and Winds Aloft in ForeFlight Mobile v2.4

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Alerts are Alive and Done ‘ForeFlight Style’

Posted on July 19, 2008 by foreflight

Last night our “Alerts” service was activated.  Alert data comes directly from the FAA and is refreshed every few minutes.  If you are curious if extensive unmanned aerial vehicle testing is happening today over the local patch in Afghanistan, now you’ll know.

When you click on the ‘Alerts’ tab in ForeFlight Mobile 2.0 while viewing airport information, you will see a nicely designed listing of obstruction, runway, taxiway, TFR and other alerts associated with that airport.  We also lookup any TFRs for any airport within a 100 nm radius of the airport you are viewing and display those at the top.  This is a convenient feature for our California pilots because most of the state is, well, on fire.

NOTAMs are decoded and translated for easy interpretation.  We group them so you know when they were issued and highlight the really important ones.  After all, that unlit tower five miles east of the airport has been broken for over a year.  Maybe they’ll fix that.

Look for the helpful icons next to certain NOTAMs and the special shading of TFRs.  These visual cues will help you quickly interpret what issues affect your departure or destination point.

No more excuses for not checking all the NOTAMs before a flight. See the screenshot gallery for pictures.

If you need an airspace refresher to help refine your preflight intelligence gathering process, AOPA’s online courses are a great way to start.

Filed under: ForeFlight Mobile | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »