Welcome to our quarterly military blog update to keep you informed and updated on the latest features in ForeFlight MFB and Dispatch.
Dispatch Updates for MFB
ForeFlight Dispatch continues to grow in functionality with dozens of new features to enable more complex and collaborative flight planning, including several only available to MFB customers.
MTRs & ARs in Dispatch
Easily plan with and file Military Training Routes and Aerial Refueling tracks as part of your flight plans in Dispatch. You can view MTRs and ARs on the flight plan map by enabling them in the Map Settings dropdown, and insert them into your route at any point using the new By-Leg Adjustment feature on the Route Builder page. To incorporate these tracks into a flight plan, enter the Route Builder and scroll down to the list of waypoints. Click the + button to the right of the waypoint where you want to begin or end a track and click Add Adjustment, then select Insert Track from the list. You can now select the type of track to add (MTR or AR), whether to insert the track before or after the selected waypoint, and specify the track identifier. Start typing in the Track field to view and select from a list of matching tracks. Click Preview in the bottom-left to open a preview map showing how the track will be inserted into the route. Click Apply Adjustments to insert the track into your route.
By-Leg Route Adjustments
Additional types of by-leg adjustments are also available to support planning with MTRs/ARs and other specialized mission profiles. New options for by-leg adjustments include:
• Cruise Profile Change – Change the cruise profile used to calculate performance results starting at the selected waypoint.
• Add Delay/STAY – Specify a delay at the selected waypoint by entering the time in hours and minutes.
• Add Point – Specify a waypoint to be inserted into the route before or after the selected waypoint.
• MFB only: Insert Track – Insert an aerial refueling track or military training route before or after the selected waypoint (full details above).
• MFB only: Add/Remove Fuel – Specify a quantity of fuel in pounds to be added or removed from the aircraft at the specified waypoint to more accurately calculate performance results for flights involving aerial refueling. You can also enter Notes to be displayed for the specified waypoint in the Navlog’s waypoint table.
• MFB only: Add/Remove Payload – Specify a payload weight in pounds to be added or removed from the aircraft at the specified waypoint to more accurately calculate performance results. You can also enter Notes to be displayed for the specified waypoint in the Navlog’s waypoint table.
New Route Constraint: Avoid Country
Direct ForeFlight’s Recommended Route to avoid certain countries as it generates an optimized route for your flight. As with all other route constraints, you can access Avoid Country near the top of the Route Builder page. Like the existing Avoid FIR constraint, selected countries to avoid are highlighted on the map.
Airspace Crossing Report
Easily review your planned Country and FIR crossings with our exportable report. To view, click on the Route Builder tool when planning your next flight. A new option is shown at the top: Route Tools. Select the Airspace Crossing option, then note the ability to toggle between FIRs or Countries. You can then export the report into CSV or Excel format.
Rubberbanding on Route Map
Manually adjust your route line simply by clicking and dragging it in Dispatch’s route map. Click and drag existing waypoints in your route to substitute them with other waypoints, or click and drag between waypoints to insert a new one. After releasing the line, a popup displaying a list of nearby airports, waypoints, and more allows you to select the new route element.
.CRD Route Import
Cut down on planning time by creating a new flight in Dispatch directly from a .CRD file import. Select your aircraft type and Dispatch will recognize and auto-fill other attributes such as Departure and Destination Airports, Departure Date and Time, Transitions and Intents, Waypoints, Altitude Values, and more.
ForeFlight MFB Updates
Dispatch isn’t the only product receiving powerful new features for Military Flight Bag customers:
Hazard Advisor Altitude Slider
Manually control Hazard Advisor’s altitude before and during a flight to evaluate routes through hazardous terrain and visualize your options at different altitudes. As a ForeFlight MFB customer, you have access to additional settings such as defining custom hazard altitudes beyond the four default options.
Looking for more? Check out these other recent additions to ForeFlight Mobile.
- Obstacles in 3D: Identify potential hazards along your route and establish a mental picture of a final approach with a toggleable Obstacles layer in 3D View.
- GeoTIFF Support: Easily import charts, maps, and other mission assets from current and legacy military mapping software, like FalconView, with new support for GeoTIFF custom content.
- AutoZoom to Custom Content: Choose whether or not ForeFlight will auto-zoom into custom charts and map layers when you enable them from the layer selector.
- Prioritize Jeppesen Plates: Choose to prioritize Jeppesen plates over DOD/FAA plates, causing Jeppesen plates to be listed first anywhere you access plates in ForeFlight.
- Easy DD-1801 Filing on the Web: Generate a DD-1801 PDF with your flight plan details, digitally sign it, and email it to Base Ops through the ForeFlight Web interface.
You can see all of ForeFlight’s latest releases here.