An Introduction to the ARINCDirect FPLNAV Team

Welcome back to Jump Seat. This week, we want to introduce you to the ARINCDirect Flight Planning and Navigation Team, also known as FPLNAV. This team is comprised of subject matter experts in flight planning, aircraft performance, and weight and balance who help maintain our flight planning software and provide second-tier flight planning support for our Flight Coordinators and customers. 

Team Responsibilities

This unique subset within our Customer Success organization is comprised of licensed pilots, aircraft dispatchers, aerospace engineers, meteorologists, and technical experts working daily to ensure the accuracy of your flight plan computations. They are responsible for the processing, integrity and maintenance of data supporting the full lifecycle of your flight plans beginning when an aircraft type is loaded into our system to the moment you have your flight plan on your iPad. 

Every new aircraft type is built in our system by our Aircraft Performance Analysts, in coordination with FLIGHTKEYS, our flight planning engine vendor and partner based in Vienna, Austria. Using proprietary tools, performance data is meticulously extracted from aircraft manuals and OEM software, then loaded into the FLIGHTKEYS 5D Flight Planning engine. Not only do we utilize the published climb, cruise, and descent schedules, but we also consider your aircraft’s residual rate of climb, buffet envelope, and specific range when computing the most optimal speed and altitude for your selected route.  

Meanwhile, our Nav Analysts are processing an updated ARINC 424 Navigation dataset for every 28-day AIRAC cycle and making tailored adjustments to account for new airports, NOTAMs, special event routing, and more. They also have built a database of over 2,600 routes sourced from ATC Traffic Management, airport tower controllers, and cleared filings to provide the most accurate and realistic routing for your flight plans, especially in terminal areas. 

Next, you’ll again see the work of our Performance Analysts if you utilize our weight and balance, takeoff and landing calculations, or runway analysis provided by our vendor, Aircraft Performance Group (APG). Weights, arm locations, and interior cabin configurations are loaded into a profile specific to your tail. ARINCDirect gives you access to all these features on the Create FPL page so that flight planning, weight and balance calculations, and the determination of takeoff and landing limiting weights for a selected runway are all integrated within your flight planning process. 

Finally, your flight plan output is rendered on one of over 1,100 formats manually created by our team. Each format is uniquely customized, and many are specifically built to meet regulatory, LOA, and OpSpec requirements for both domestic and international operations.  

But wait, there’s more… 

After you have your flight plan in hand, FPLNAV is available to provide second-tier troubleshooting support to investigate errors, verify navigation points, review performance calculations, and correct routing issues.

The FPLNAV Team

From top to bottom, left to right: Lisa Pickrell, Hana Vienneau, Brian Boothe, Janelle Lepisto, Ethan Milius, and John Sullivan (not pictured: Ewelina Sliwska)

Meet Ryan Silk, a senior member of the FPLNAV team with 11 years of experience at ARINCDirect

Ryan is a born and raised New Hampshire native currently based in Annapolis, Maryland. He attended Bridgewater State University where he graduated with a degree in Aviation Science and later completed a graduate certificate in Geographic Information Systems from Penn State University. As an instrument-rated commercial pilot and FAA-certified aircraft dispatcher, he quickly mastered our Core, International, and Flight Following services when he joined the company as a Flight Coordinator in 2011. He went on to join the FPLNAV team in 2017 where he has become one of the leading subject matter experts of our flight planning software. When he's not enjoying hiking, traveling, or the occasional visit to a farm brewery with his wife and 2 daughters, he's working diligently to provide customer support and work on development efforts for many of the new flight planning features and enhancements you see today!

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