Get Your Weather While You Plan Your Flight... Via FliteStar

While ANN was running around/amok at Oshkosh (much like a certain poultry product sans any evidence of cranial capacity), we were hard-pressed to keep up with all the goodies that were presented... but the crowds surrounding the Jepp building convinced us that it was worth spending a few hours there... and we were NOT disappointed.

During the annual aerial love-fest at Oshkosh, Jepp took the wraps off a new version of its new FliteStar flight planning program that now includes enhanced global weather data services. Jeppesen FliteStar users will now be able to improve situational awareness through receiving continually updated weather information. Weather data is now presented through multiple customized graphical formats displayed according to FliteStar coverage area, user preference and flight plan.

The ground-based FliteStar version 9.5 presents users with a dynamic graphical view of the weather environment in both enroute and profile views and reduces the need to switch between enroute and weather displays. Jeppesen weather data now aligns with the FliteStar coverage area purchased and weather download overlay displays are presented on enroute charts and are updated automatically through an Internet connection. The new version of the FliteStar program provides a new tool to view current weather at or near the time of departure plus forecast weather along a route and at a user’s planned destination. The weather service combines current data from the National Weather Service and other sources, including NEXRAD mosaic data and includes critical icing and turbulence information.

Weather elements included in the new FliteStar version includes AIRMETs, SIGMETs, radar, lighting, surface analysis, METARs, icing, turbulence and wind data. A new weather toolbar gives users the ability to display or close these graphical elements, according to user preference. A new “chart time slider” feature allows users to view current weather for the flight plan and a new “weather legend” graphical element shows all currently displayed weather elements. An “icing” display bar allows users to formulate an ice-avoidance strategy and flight plan before leaving the ground. By the way, ANN is currently evaluating a copy of the latest version of FliteStar and the weather capabilities are every bit as slick as promised. The current version of FligteStar is packed to the gills with features and we're looking forwards to checking each of them out... More news to follow. In the meantime, though, check out the Aero-TV interview with the folks at Jepp about the new weather reporting functions built into FliteStar.

FMI: www.jeppesen.com, www.aero-tv.net, www.youtube.com/aerotvnetwork, http://twitter.com/AeroNews