Volume 1 | Friday, April 24th, 2020
Relaxed North Atlantic Data Link Mandate due to COVID-19
Welcome to the inaugural ARINCDirect Jump Seat . With these periodic emails we hope to keep you up-to-date on important happenings in our industry. This week’s topic is the North Atlantic Data Link Mandate and how COVID-19 has affected it.
The worldwide impact of COVID-19 is evident throughout the entire aviation community. Some of the more notable trends have included the grounding of aircraft, the emptying of airspaces, and the push to support humanitarian efforts. According to our sources at Gander Oceanic, the North Atlantic has seen an 85-90% reduction in traffic. As a result of these measures, Phase 2C of the North Atlantic Data Link Mandate has been suspended until 30 June 2020.

As you may recall, this latest phase of the North Atlantic Data Link Mandate (NAT DLM) issued in January 2020 mandated the use of FANS CPDLC and ADS-C between FL290 and FL410 over the region. However, due to the relaxation in the mandate, aircraft that are not yet equipped with FANS CPDLC and ADS-C will be able to operate between those altitudes throughout EGGX (Shanwick), BIRD (Reykjavik), CZQX (Gander) and LPPO (Santa Maria) Flight Information Regions throughout the duration of the NOTAMs.

To reflect these changes within our tools, ARINCDirect has changed the prompts usually seen when planning a route over the North Atlantic. Our flight-planning tools, designed to suggest routing based on an aircraft’s equipment, will still prompt users to double-check the track messages for more guidance.
To facilitate the change, we have added links for the East and West track messages. Please ensure that you refer to the NOTAMs mentioned within remarks sections for up-to-date requirements. As always, our flight coordinators are available at 866-321-6060 to help with any questions you may have on the subject. 

Additionally, Gander and Shanwick Oceanic have lately only issued one track per direction throughout a reduced number of altitudes. While deciding where to place these tracks, Preferred Route Messages (PRMs) and Minimum Time Tracks (MTTs) are still considered. This temporary practice will serve to guide operators to the absolute core of the jet (Eastbound), or where headwinds will be lightest (Westbound). With fewer tracks issued, more room is left for optimization.
Did you know?
  • ARINCDirect offers training on NextGen Data Link. Check out our Help/Training page to register for a future session and to watch completed web seminars. 
  • ARINCDirect can help you prepare now for operating throughout the North Atlantic after this mandate has been reactivated. Contact us at 866-321-6060 to assist with your LOA needs. Please don’t wait until the last minute!
Useful Links:
Thank you!
We want this bulletin to reflect your informational needs.
Please contact us with topic suggestions and we’ll get back to you.