Lido/Flight User Group Conference 2017: Lufthansa Systems’ customer event focuses on interaction, information and cooperative development

Raunheim | May 31, 2017– Lufthansa Systems today announced that it will present the first Integrated Flight Support prototype, the future core module of its new Lido/Flight 4D product generation, at this year’s Lido/Flight User Group (LUG) Conference. The conference will offer an insight into technical innovations related to the flight planning system as well as an opportunity for intensive interaction among the 170 product experts and customers attending. The LUG Conference is taking place from May 31 to June 1 in Paris, the headquarters of this year’s partner airline, Air France.

“Integrating different systems is an essential aspect of modern flight planning. Flight data is very dynamic. To get an overview of the current situation in the air, everyone involved needs the same sources of information. Airports, air traffic control and customer systems should be able to exchange data in real time. This is the only way for employees on the ground and on the flight deck to make right decisions based on the same information,” said Philipp Barzen, Head of Product Strategy Lido/Flight at Lufthansa Systems.

The core features of the Lido/Flight 4D flight planning solution are the integrated and continually updated aeronautical database and the optimizer. The system calculates the most suitable route for each flight based on all flight-related data, taking into account weather conditions and the current airspace situation including any restrictions. By migrating to the new product generation, customers will benefit from a modern architecture offering even better integration of relevant data from adjacent systems, a modern graphical user interface and display, 4D optimization and extensively automated flight planning and control processes.

Lufthansa Systems is taking an agile approach to the further development of Lido/Flight 4D. This means that customers are continually involved in the process. In addition to the two big annual customer events – the LUG Conference in the spring and the LUG Forum in the fall – the Lido/Flight-Team is holding workshops and gathering feedback on new features. The second release of Lido/Flight 4D R6.2.0 is planned for the fall of 2017 and will include improvements to crew briefing and route optimization. This is followed by another important milestone in the spring of 2018, a technical release with a complete migration to Linux. The prototype, which provides a glimpse into the future of Lido/Flight 4D, goes even further: It shows the new interface as well as other new functions, such as integrated navigation maps from Lido/Navigation.

“Along with the integrated map display, we are expanding our strategic cooperation with the Lido/Flight and Lido/Navigation product teams to create even better applications for pilots,” Barzen said. One example is the new Lido/mBriefing app, a mobile briefing solution with a direct interface to the Lido/mPilot mobile navigation solution.

During the LUG Conference, product experts will explain the new features of Lido/Flight 4D to customers in various sessions. They will also talk about the technical prerequisites for migration and discuss training concepts. Lufthansa Systems is thus taking a holistic approach to flight planning optimization and supporting its customers in the areas of further development and migration.

The product known previously as Lido/Flight has performed successfully in the market for more than 20 years. Since 2015, Lufthansa Systems has been working intensively on developing the new Lido/Flight 4D generation. Around 120 airlines with a total of more than 6,000 aircraft are currently using the flight planning solution from Lufthansa Systems. More than one half of all flights in Europe are calculated using Lido/Flight 4D. In various comparative analyses based on thousands of flight plans, Lido/Flight was able to reduce fuel costs by an average of 2 percent, cut flying times by 1.9 percent and save 1.6 percent of air traffic control fees compared to its competitors. Thanks to this savings potential, Lido/Flight 4D will pay for itself after an average of about one year.

• New forecasts will be integrated into ARINCDirect flight planning tools
• Increases safety for operators in Southern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa

Dubai, UAE |December 6, 2016– Rockwell Collins is integrating regional sand and dust storm forecast information into the company’s ARINCDirectSM flight planning tools, enabling business aviation operators in those areas to improve safety and on-time performance.

“Over the past 15 years, a number of factors have resulted in an increase in the frequency, intensity and operational impact of sand and dust storms in the Middle East and surrounding areas,” said

Bob Richard, senior director, ARINCDirect for Rockwell Collins. “Integrating high-resolution forecast information into our flight and international trip support services will provide safety and performance benefits for business aviation operators in the region.”

The data used by ARINCDirect is sourced and exclusively licensed from the Barcelona Supercomputing Center, host of the first World Meteorological Organization’s Regional Specialized Meteorological Center with activity specialization on Atmospheric Sand and Dust Forecast, the Barcelona Dust Forecast Center for the EuMEA region. The data has been used by government authorities for air quality monitoring, as well as industrial and aviation interests.

The integration is currently in beta testing and is available for demonstration in the Rockwell Collins booth, #421, at the Middle East and North Africa Business Aviation Association Show (MEBAA 2016), Jebel Ali, Dubai, December 6-8, 2016.

ARINCDirect provides business aviation operators with the single most comprehensive portfolio of flight support solutions in the industry including cabin connectivity services, flight planning, regional and international trip support and flight operations management.

• Spanish regional airline renews contract for flight planning solution from Lufthansa Systems

Raunheim, Germany | September 27, 2016– Lufthansa Systems today announced that the Spanish regional airline Air Nostrum has renewed its contract for the Lido/Flight flight planning solution for another four years. The contract renewal is accompanied by a migration to the new product generation Lido/Flight 4D. With this Air Nostrum will benefit from an even better integration, a more modern graphical user interface and display, 4D optimization and extensively automated flight planning and control processes.

“We have been using the flight planning solution from Lufthansa Systems since 2005 because the product is very reliable and meets our needs,” said Carlos Lloréns, Ground Operations Director at Air Nostrum. “The new generation Lido/Flight 4D impressed us above all with the range and quality of its functions.”

The core features of the IT solution are the integrated and continually updated aeronautical database and the so-called optimizer. Based on all flight-related data, weather conditions and the current airspace situation including any restrictions, Lido/Flight 4D calculates the most suitable route for each flight.

Around 120 airlines with a total of more than 6,000 aircraft are currently using the flight planning solution from Lufthansa Systems, which has been successful on the market for more than 15 years. In June of this year, the first release of the new Lido/Flight 4D product generation was unveiled at the Lido/Flight User Group Conference – the next one is coming up this fall. This year’s releases cover certain basic components for migrating to current technologies as well as the first functional innovations and improvements for takeoff and landing weight optimization, crew briefing and route optimization.

“Air Nostrum’s contract renewal shows that our investment in the refinement of the solution based on feedback from our customers has paid off,” said Marco Cesa, Senior Vice President Regional Management EMEA at Lufthansa Systems. “Our innovative solution offers reliability and flexibility, simplifies routine tasks and makes it possible to quickly make the right decisions in critical situations.”

In various comparative analyses based on thousands of flight plans, Lido/Flight was able to reduce fuel costs by an average of 2 percent, cut flying times by 1.9 percent and save 1.6 percent of air traffic control fees compared to its competitors.

Air Nostrum operates under the Iberia Regional brand mostly within Spain, although it also serves destinations in Europe and North Africa. The Spanish airline is based in Valencia and is one of the three largest regional airlines in Europe.

Picture description (copyright: Lufthansa Systems): Airlines can optimally plan their routes with Lido/Flight from Lufthansa Systems.

Melbourne, FL | March 2, 2016– Satcom Direct’s FlightDeck Freedom® datalink and Universal Weather and Aviation, Inc.’s online flight planning and weather services are now available in an integrated and bundled offering, pairing one of the industry’s leading business aviation connectivity providers with the global resources and expertise of Universal.

Joining forces to offer seamless datalink and online flight planning, Satcom Direct (SD) FlightDeck Freedom (FDF) datalink and Universal® flight planning are integrated through uvGO, Universal’s do-it-yourself (DIY) mission planning and management solution. uvGO, available via iPad app and online, allows users to plan, build, and manage all aspects of a mission—from DIY worldwide flight planning and weather, to UVair® fuel pricing and arrangements, to airport and FBO information, and total trip coordination through Universal Trip Support. Flight crews can uplink and view flight plans and weather in the cockpit, and display aircraft communications, position details, and messages via uvGO, when on the ground and in the air.

The alliance recognizes Universal as the preferred trip management provider for Satcom Direct flight deck services, and FlightDeck Freedom is now the unlimited, fixed-rate datalink service offered by Universal. Aircraft operators receive the bundled datalink and flight planning offering through a single contract and a single invoice.

“This collaboration perfectly fits our mission of advancing the industry by both developing new technologies and bringing together the right partners to deliver unmatched capabilities,” said Jim Jensen, SD Founder and CEO.

Satcom Direct’s FlightDeck Freedom datalink service is fully compatible with all avionics and airframe manufacturers. FDF uses datalink technology that is specifically designed to support business and military aviation, worldwide.

“uvGO integrates all of our services and functionality into one simple interface that has been redesigned around the way business aircraft operators tell us they plan and manage their missions. The seamless integration of FDF into uvGO adds tremendous value for our clients,” said Denio Alvarado, Senior Vice President, Global Product Strategy, Universal.

FDF enables the flight crew to monitor cabin communications to assure voice and internet services are working for passengers. Schedulers/dispatchers and maintenance personnel have access to automated takeoff and landing reports, email messages to and from the aircraft, and can monitor aircraft position at any time with SD’s exclusive SD Flight Tracker.

“Today, the Universal and SD collaboration brings robust capabilities to our customers. In the future there will be a deeper integration allowing us to deliver services that no other trip support provider or datalink provider is offering,” said Scott Hamilton, SD Chief Strategy Officer.

• China Southern successfully introduced another software solution from Lufthansa Systems

Raunheim, Germany | November 18, 2015– Lufthansa Systems today announced that the Chinese airline China Southern plans its flights with Lido/Flight. Following the completion of the implementation phase, the flight planning solution from Lufthansa Systems is successfully operational since a few weeks. China Southern has been a Lufthansa Systems customer since 2007 and is also using the NetLine/Plan and NetLine/Sched solutions from the airline IT specialist for its medium- and short-range flight planning.

“We require a flight planning software that meets our needs as the largest airline in the Asian market,” said Mr. Cui Maixi, Director of Dispatch at China Southern. “With its powerful flight planning functions and automated data processing which ensures efficient flight operations, Lido/Flight from Lufthansa Systems optimally meets our requirements.”

Every day, more than 30,000 flights worldwide for over 110 airlines are calculated using Lido/Flight. The core features of Lido/Flight are the integrated and continually updated aeronautical database and the so-called optimizer. Based on all flight-related data, weather conditions and the current airspace situation including any restrictions, Lido/Flight interactively and fully automatically calculates the most suitable route for each flight. Lido/Flight provides dispatchers with significant optimization options regarding flight time, fuel consumption or costs of each flight. The system has around 2,700 configuration parameters, enabling it to be adapted to specific customer requirements and regulations. Lido/Flight is being used successfully worldwide by leading airlines of all sizes, business models and alliances – including low-cost, network, cargo and charter airlines. The system is a component of the Integrated Operations Control (IOCC) Platform from Lufthansa Systems, which facilitates comprehensive monitoring of all business processes by integrating several operations control solutions.

“We are delighted that China Southern is satisfied with our products and has opted for another solution from our portfolio. This successful, long-standing cooperation with the largest carrier in China strengthens our position in the Asian market and also highlights the great economic benefits of our products,” said Tom Vandendael, Senior Vice President Regional Management Asia Pacific at Lufthansa Systems.

Based in Guangzhou, China Southern is the largest airline in the People’s Republic of China. The airline serves 190 destinations worldwide with its fleet of 540 aircraft. China Southern is a member of the SkyTeam alliance.

• New capabilities extend Gogo’s position as a complete, “nose-to-tail” communications provider in the business aviation market

NBAA, Las Vegas | November 16, 2015– November 16, 2015 – Gogo Inc. (NASDAQ: GOGO), the leading provider of wireless in-flight connectivity and entertainment solutions to the global aero market, announces the availability of an expanded suite of cockpit and datalink services for its business aviation customers from Honeywell’s Global Data Center (GDC).

The additional services include Inmarsat Classic Aero (voice and data services) along with a variety of flight planning, datalink, graphical cockpit and weather information, flight following and concierge services.

John Wade, Gogo Business Aviation’s executive vice president and general manager, said, “We’re pleased to debut this additional suite of GDC services and offer Gogo customers the convenience of single-source activation, support and unified monthly billing.”

Gogo is unique in that it offers one of the business aviation market’s widest selections of in-flight voice and data services, which now include Gogo Biz, SwiftBroadband, Jet ConneX, Classic Aero, Swift64, Iridium, terrestrial 3G and Gogo Cloud (automated content delivery).

Michael Edmonds, Honeywell Aerospace Services Vice President, added “Honeywell’s continued mission is to innovate our on-board and portable solutions to reduce the work load for flight crews and maintainers of aircraft. We are proud to partner with Gogo to expand the availability of these services to more users.”

Today’s announcement is part of a larger initiative at Gogo Business Aviation as the company continues to expand its voice and data airtime services. The company offers a full range of easy-to-understand plans along with a suite of tools and support services that help customers monitor and manage their monthly usage. Special discounts are offered for bundled services and customers that operate multiple aircraft.

Dubai, UAE | December 7, 2014– Rockwell Collins will be showcasing its new portfolio of ARINCDirect flight information solutions and market-leading cabin systems at the Middle East Business Aviation (MEBA) annual convention and exhibition.

The New ARINCDirect

This suite of flight support services for business aviation consolidates and integrates Rockwell Collins’ former Ascend Flight Information Solutions and ARINC Direct services into one industry-leading solution for flight planning, regional and international trip support, cabin connectivity and flight operations management.

Middle East customers will now experience the single most comprehensive portfolio of flight support solutions in the industry, along with reliable performance, industry-leading technical expertise and outstanding customer service they expect―all from one company.

ARINCDirect services that will be highlighted at MEBA 2014 include:

• An innovative tankering feature available through the ARINCDirect customer portal which helps business aviation operators better manage fuel costs
• An integrated weight and balance/performance feature in the ARINCDirect iPad app that provides business aviation pilots the ability to make accurate computations with or without an Internet connection
• Extensions of Rockwell Collins’ Flight Operating System (FOS) featuring new levels of integration between the ARINCDirect application and the flight scheduling and operations management software
• The latest connectivity capabilities to help keep the cabin and crew connected in-flight.

Market-Leading Cabin Systems

Rockwell Collins’ Venue HD cabin management and entertainment system has been installed on more than 450 aircraft, which is more than any other HD system available in the market. In recent years, because of the system’s flexible design, Venue has become a popular choice for the large VIP aircraft aftermarket.

Venue’s flexibility allows for integration of other cabin systems, including its Airshow Moving Map system and its Apple-enabling Skybox solution. Airshow delivers real-time flight information for passengers during their journeys through the world, both on cabin-mounted and personal devices. Skybox, as well as Venue’s embedded audio/video on-demand (AVOD) function, allows passengers to stream content throughout the cabin. Skybox is first airworthy solution to securely stream digital rights management (DRM) Hollywood-protected content.

Rockwell Collins’ Tailwind multi-region in-flight TV system offers content-rich, live programming during flight. The company recently announced new satellite reception technology for its Tailwind 550 system for large VIP aircraft. The new technology provides 25-percent greater programming coverage for all supported regions and it improves reliability when traveling between regions where satellite coverage may be weak, and flying in hot and humid areas.