For airlines, the motto absolutely has to be ‘safety first’. There can be no margin for error.

Flight Operations teams and Dispatchers are under immense pressure to provide the crew with absolutely accurate information covering everything from weather and NOTAM data to the weight of the aircraft before take-off. This means collating huge amounts of data, taking into account the multitude of variables that can impact on flight operations, and planning the necessary actions for a safe and functional flight at a minimum possible cost. The crew then have to digest all this information pre-flight to ensure they are happy to undertake the voyage.

Even for a team of Flight Ops specialists and experienced crew members, it certainly is a lot to achieve on a daily basis. skybook assists Flight Ops and crew throughout the entire planning, dispatch and briefing process, collating critical data from reliable sources automatically, reducing the margin for error and putting safety first. This article explains how each key member of Flight Ops, Dispatch and the Crew benefits from using skybook.

 

Flight Operations/Support

The Flight Operations team are responsible for generating flight plans, coping with issues that might affect the flight and ensuring that the flight record is kept up to date with al the relevant information.

On top of this they also have to monitor the weather and NOTAM at all times, keeping up to date with the status of the aircraft and being ready to provide any operational support when needed.

These matters are usually handled simultaneously and the Flight Operations team are a prime example of multi-tasking.

skybook helps by automating the collection of all of this information, highlighting issues and alerting them to the Flight Operations team. This reduces pressure on the team and frees up valuable time to be used in other worthwhile areas.

skybook tools: Airfield Watcher, Dispatch Monitor, Ops Board, Crew Notices

All key personnel at this stage including Flight Operations Coordinators, Operations Duty Officers and Flight Operations Managers can all have access to skybook at varying levels based on their roles and access privileges.

 

Flight Dispatch

Meanwhile, Flight Dispatchers are responsible for ensuring everything is in place to dispatch the aircraft. Dispatchers must ensure the Crew have all the right information, including the flight plan, METAR, TAF, NOTAMs, charts and notices. Collating this information is very time consuming and Dispatchers are up against tight deadlines every day.

skybook helps by collating this information automatically (weather, NOTAM, flight plans, company notices and more) and watches this data for any changes that might affect the dispatch of the aircraft.  skybook informs the Dispatcher of any critical issues so that they can take the necessary actions.

skybook presents this information in a standard company format, which forms the briefing pack that is sent to the Crew.

skybook tools: Sector Briefing, Planning Portal, Dispatch Monitor, Crew Notices

Key personnel at this stage such as Flight Dispatchers, Dispatch Managers, Dispatch Support Specialists and Crew Dispatchers all have access to skybook to support their roles.

 

Flight Crew

Before take-off, the crew meets for a joint briefing; with both the Commander and co-pilot sifting through the whole briefing package for relevant information and calculating important figures such as the amount of fuel they require.

As soon as this briefing is finished the pack is added to the flight bag so it is available during the flight.

Using skybook, this briefing pack is not only generated automatically as soon as the flight plan is released, but the briefing pack is formatted to a company standard and filtered so it only displays relevant data, with important information highlighted making it easier for the Crew to brief.

skybook tools: Sector Briefing, Template Briefing, Planning Portal, Crew Notices

Similar to the Flight Ops and Dispatch stage, Captains and First Officers can also access skybook with unique permissions relevant to their roles.

During the entire Flight Operation, Dispatch and Briefing process there really can be no margin for error. skybook was designed to assist the key personnel throughout these stages and reduce the pressure they face in their roles on a day to day basis.

Using skybook also enables airline directors and managers to maximise efficiency during these key stages, ensuring all aircraft dispatches are carried out to company standards, whilst keeping costs to a minimum.

For more detailed information on using skybook in your airline, please visit our skybook page. Or contact us on info@bytron.aero to discuss enhancing your info@bytron.aero.