AOPA Says Usage of Its New Real-Time Flight Planner Tops All Expectations   

The U.S. Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association says more than 55,000 members have installed its new real-time flight planner only two months after it was introduced.  And more than 500 more members are trying it each day, on average.  

Its members aren't just trying the flight planner once either, AOPA says.  Since its introduction, the average planner user has logged on more than six times, totaling some 340,000 usages.  Some 2,000 members are using the system each day. 

The continuing problem of temporary flight restrictions (TFRs)  – a consequence of the "war on terror" – is a major reason why general aviation pilots use the planner, AOPA believes.  The online application accesses a database of the latest TFR information, developed by AOPA's partner Jeppesen, each time it is started, giving the user the most up-to-date TFR depictions possible.  If a planned route intersects a TFR, the pilot can use his computer cursor to easily "rubber-band" the route around the area.  Meanwhile, the printable navigation log is automatically updated as the pilot makes changes. 

AOPA's Real-Time Flight Planner also allows a pilot to access either DUATS weather provider to get an official weather briefing, file a flight plan, and download real-time radar and satellite images that can be overlaid on a planned route.  01-23-2004.

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