HESH/Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt has reopened to international traffic, with a large number of airlines starting services again on 01NOV.

Before the bombing of Metrojet 9268 one year ago, Sharm was the 3rd busiest airport in Egypt.

However, there are conflicting views on security at the airport, depending on your state of registry. Operators from Germany, Poland, Russia have now started operations, but UK government policy keeps HESH on the ban list.

Our overflight advice for the Sinai Peninsula remains in place, on the basis of FAA Notam KICZ 6/16, and EASA SIB 2014-30R2 (UK and Germany) . View safeairspace.net for the current map.

At the same time, Egyptian newspapers are carrying stories that Tourism levels will return to pre-2011 levels within the next few months. Now that’s optimistic.

Hong Kong is a pain in the ass – it’s official 20OCT Authorities in Hong Kong confirmed yesterday that the airport is a giant pain, especially for non-scheduled operators. Lining up slots, parking, permits and handling is extremely difficult. End result: a mountain of frustration. Read the article.

Haiti relief operations – and Airbus Flight 101 20OCT After Hurricane Matthew last week, MTPP/Port-au-Prince (Toussaint Louverture) became a central focus in relief efforts for Haiti. OpsGroup member Airbus operated an amazing relief flight from Lyon. Read the article.

VTZZ/Thailand is in a period of mourning following the death of His Majesty, King Bhumibol on 13 October. This is a time of deep sorrow for Thai people – refrain from any behaviour that may be interpreted as festive, disrespectful or disorderly. Abide by local laws and respect Thai customs. There may be some disruption of commercial and public services during the mourning period, especially during the first 30 days (until 13 November). Tourist attractions are open with the exception of Wat Pra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) and the Grand Palace in Bangkok. Expect traffic disruptions and heightened security around these areas as people pay their respects to the late King.

EBBR/Brussels All non-scheduled flights destined to EBBR are allowed only after special permission by Airport Authority before start of flight. Contact +32 2 7536900 or inspect@brusselsairport.be.

DTZZ/Tunisia extended the state of emergency on 18OCT, set to expire, by three months. The state of emergency went into effect following a series of terrorist attacks in 2015 and has been extended multiple times.

ORBB/Baghdad FIR Traffic entering from Baghdad FIR (ORBB) to Ankara FIR (LTAA) shall file their FPL as follows: NINVA-OTKEP-SRT at FL320 and above. NOTAM A4572/16 refers.

Solomon Islands There has been a confirmed outbreak of dengue fever in the capital city, Honiara; you should follow the advice of the local authorities and take steps to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes; you should take out comprehensive travel and medical insurance before travelling to the Solomon Islands

TXKF/Bermuda Due to maintenance, the Bermuda Radar system will be out of service on Friday. Recommended reroute to avoid airspace. New York Center overflight procedures will be in effect. Routes have been developed to provide limited non-radar service within the airspace. All departures from Bermuda will be held down at FL310.

OJAI/Amman, Jordan Runway 26L/08R will be closed for urgent pavement maintenance on these days in November:  01,08,15,22,29: from 0930-1330Z. The airport will not be available for either normal operations or emergency diverts during the closure period.

OEZZ/Saudi Arabia From 8 to 10 October there were several missile attacks reported near the Saudi / Yemeni border and the southern Red Sea.

ZZZZ/Worldwide Regulatory and voluntary bans on Samsung Galaxy Note7 smartphones is spreading as airlines and airport authorities around the world are announcing bans or restricted usage on the device, which has been withdrawn by Samsung after some devices caught fire. Ban notices are being issued primarily through airline online check-in pages, as well as via public announcements in airport terminals and onboard aircraft. The US Department of Transportation (DOT) was first to issue a total ban on taking the device on board, as a passenger or as air cargo, when it gave an emergency order Oct. 15 with FAA.The devices are being banned because of fire concerns, and the fallout following an incident involving a smoking smartphone on board a Southwest Airlines aircraft in Louisville, Kentucky on Oct. 5.

YZZZ/Australia will not be implementing the changes in the ICAO PANS-ATM (Doc 4444), as they say they haven’t had enough time to work on the safety case – ie. figuring out if these changes are dangerous in any way. In short, they won’t be saying “Climb via SID” or “Climb via STAR”, which are the new phraseologies.

TTZP/Piarco wins the award for most confusing AIC of the week, namely AIC03/16 issued on 13OCT. Titled “RVSM Implementation”, it appears that Trinidad is finally implementing RVSM in their airspace. But wait, they did that in 2005. So what’s new in this AIC? It’s a mystery. Take a look and see if you can spot it.

KLAX/Los Angeles 3 out of the 4 runways at KLAX have now been renovated. Runway 6R/24L reopened on 16OCT after renovations. Improvements to the fourth and final runway, 07L/25R, will begin OCT22 and continue until June 2017. This last runway will be partially closed until January, and then closed completely to allow for more extensive work to be done

FSIA/Seychelles Runway will be closed on Thursday 20 and 27 Oct between 1815-0245z and Friday 21 and 28 Oct between 1900-0215z. Can be opened in cases of emergency.

UHPP/Petropavlovsk Eruption in progress at Klyuchevskoy volcano (N5603E16038) near UHPP. Ash cloud reported at 0720z on 17 Oct from ground level up to FL300.

VVZZ/Vietnam Typhoon Sarika is forecast to bring hazardous sea and weather conditions to parts of northern Vietnam from around 19 October 2016; heavy rainfall could lead to flooding and landslides

KLAS/Las Vegas Because of the next presidential debate that will be held in Las Vegas on October 19, 2016, intermittent road closures will affect access to McCarran International Airport (LAS) between 4 pm and 10 pm on that date. The recommended route to the airport from the east side of the valley is westbound Flamingo Road to southbound Paradise Road. The recommended route to the airport from the west side of the valley is eastbound Tropicana Avenue to southbound Paradise Road.

OIIX/Tehran FIR The minimum safe level on R462 between DENDA and METBI has been raised to FL140.

KSFO/San Francisco has a new ATC Tower operational since Sunday last, located between Terminals 1 and 2. Per the local report, it “offers controllers a 650-square-foot work area with unobstructed 235-degree views of the airport’s runways and taxiways”. Hopefully there’s not much going on in the other 125 degrees.

OSZZ/Syria Russia’s only aircraft carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov, is nearing the end of a work-up period outside the port of Murmansk before heading for the eastern Mediterranean, reportedly to begin air operations against targets in Syria.

EGPK/Prestwick will be closed from midnight to 0400Z on 21OCT, due to a planned ATC power outage. ATC reachable during outage at +447917 424603.

RPZZ/Philippines Typhoon Sarika recently passed through the island of Luzon as a category 4 storm. Transportation routes, power and telecommunications systems could be affected in some areas. Other services that may be affected in these areas include emergency and medical care, as well as water and food supplies. If travelling to affected areas, exercise caution, monitor local news and weather reports, and follow the advice of local authorities.

View full International Bulletin 20OCT2016 

After a few members complained, we put  the question out to OpsGroup:  is operating a non-scheduled flight to Hong Kong really that difficult?

The response was a resounding “Yes”. 

Why then? Operators talk of having to cancel planned flights, that it’s impossible to get a decent schedule, and even with a poor one, that lining up slots, parking, permits and handling is extremely difficult. End result: a mountain of frustration.

Trying to get slots at Hong Kong International Airport has always been tricky. Now the world’s third busiest airport with over 1000 flights per day departing from its two runways, severe congestion means that only a handful of daily slots have been available to private, corporate and non-scheduled operators.

Here’s a look at a typical daily slot availability chart at Hong Kong International Airport:

Back in March 2016, the airport authority made it mandatory for all BA/GA operators to start using the Online Coordination System (OCS) to reserve their slots, rather than by email as they had done previously. But for many, this system has proven to be frustrating, as a lack of enforcement has meant that slot hoarding and mismanagement by some operators has largely gone unpunished.

But in a recent attempt to crack down on such behaviour and to prevent slots going unused, the airport authority has tightened restrictions for operators flying into or out of Hong Kong. You now need all 4 of the following to be confirmed in advance: landing permit, parking, ground handling, and slots.

New changes mean that slots can be booked up to 14 days in advance (instead of 7 days as before), and authorities will monitor the slot system for intentional misuse – which could lead to operators being banned from using the system altogether. Other violations include any cancellations of outbound flights less than 72 hours before departure, and delays on the day by more than 2 hours – although any off-slot operations outside a tolerance of +/-20 minutes can still flag up for potential slot misuse.

As for parking – again, severe congestion means this is problematic. Parking is confirmed on a first-come-first-served basis, and can be applied for up to 30 days in advance – ultimately, the earlier you apply the better. However, parking requests for 5 days or more will likely be rejected, and overnight parking is often denied during busy periods. If this happens, unfortunately the best strategy is still to just keep making new applications until you get accepted!

Over 100 business jets use HKIA as their home base, but fewer than 70 parking spaces are available at any given time, and the GA ramp itself only has space for 20 aircraft. If full, the authorities will rarely grant parking on the commercial side, and often they will just deny the parking request altogether. Once your parking is approved, you’ll receive a confirmation, and this must be given to your ground handler.

It should be noted that the requests for the landing permit, parking, ground handling and slots are all separate from each other, and need to be applied for individually. We would recommend the following, in order:

1. Apply for LANDING PERMIT

Can be done whenever, but should probably be done first.

www.cad.gov.hk/english/efiling_home.html

Civil Aviation Department (CAD)

Email: asd@cad.gov.hk, gcmtse@cad.gov.hk

Phone: +852 2910-6648, -6629

2. Apply for PARKING

Can be done up to 14 days in advance of flight, the earlier you do this the better!

https://extranet.hongkongairport.com/baps/


Hong Kong Airport Authority (HKAA)

Email: bjetslot@hkairport.com

3. Apply for GROUND HANDLING

There are plenty of agents and handlers at VHHH, but only one dedicated FBO for BA/GA flights:

http://www.hkbac.com/en

Hong Kong Business Aviation Centre (HKBAC)

Email: hkbac@hkbac.com

Phone: +852 2949 9000

4. Apply for SLOTS

Will only be considered 14 days prior to flight.

http://www.hkgslot.gov.hk/Online_Coordination.html

Hong Kong Schedule Coordination Office (HKSCO)

Email: hkgslot@cad.gov.hk

Phone: +852 2910 6898

“Don’t assume.  Verify, verify, verify.”  That’s good advice from James, an experienced dispatcher working for one of the largest passenger and cargo airlines in the Middle East.

The job of dispatching, on its face, seems straightforward and simple:  Prepare legal releases, make sure they are sent to the crews, follow the flights along their journey, and coordinate with the crews on any unexpected issues that pop up.  The reality, however, is that the dispatch center for an airline of this size is a complicated beehive of activity.  They work to safely dispatch flights to and from 6 continents 24 hours a day.

From the time James arrives at work for his morning shift at 0300z, the unexpected is the rule rather than the exception.  The workload is high: during a twelve hour shift, James might dispatch between 22 and 27 flights, three or four of which might be Ultra Long Range (ULR) operations.  The goal is to have the releases ready six hours in advance.  That seems like a lot of time, but for ULR operations it can take between one-and-a-half and two hours to plan a flight.  The aviation business is dynamic—this is especially true in the Middle East.  As departure time approaches, James might have to revise the release five times due to changes in aircraft loading.  The goal is to order enough fuel to complete the flight successfully, but not so much as to detrimentally impact the economic viability of the flight.  It is a constant juggling act where one has to always be flexible.  “You try to stay organized and pace yourself,” James says.

But the clock is always running, and delays can cost money—big money.  Operations from Europe and the Middle East to India and Southeast Asia can prove especially challenging in this regard.  There is an enormous amount of traffic on these routes and every aircraft must transit the Muscat FIR.  Muscat doesn’t have radar coverage over much of its area of responsibility, so air traffic control is done the old fashioned way: position reports and time estimates.  This isn’t like flying through radar controlled airspace; separation between aircraft must be increased to ensure safety.  To accommodate all of the flights, every day at 1500z until 0000z Muscat institutes strict flow control through its FIR.  Missing a departure time by even a few minutes can result in your planned altitude being unavailable, resulting in an increase in fuel burn.  “Missing a slot time means getting stuck at FL270 all the way across the Indian Ocean,” James says.

The African continent offers particular dispatching challenges not seen elsewhere in the world.  Africa is a morass of differing rules and regulations that can change whenever an aircraft crosses an international border.  Overflight privileges  must be obtained well in advance and prescribed company routes must be rigidly adhered to.  If an aircraft unexpectedly wanders into the wrong county’s airspace, “you might find yourself in a spot of bother,” James says.

NOTAM communication in Africa is notoriously poor.  James tells the story of a recent flight where the crew was advised that the airport in Nairobi was closed after they were airborne; in fact, they were less than two hours out.  James quickly began coordinating with the Kenyan authorities and planning viable divert alternatives.  The Kenyan voice on the other end of the phone insisted that, although the airport was technically closed, it would be no problem for the aircraft to land.  “This really isn’t the way we should be doing business,” James says.

While Africa presents challenges, flights over China experience route rigidity unequaled throughout the world.  When an aircraft needs to change course for weather avoidance, the common response from Chinese air traffic control is, “maintain the airway.”

How do dispatchers plan safe routes through such extensively controlled airspace?  Preflight planning must include a very careful look at the weather and NOTAMS for active restricted airspace and incorporate routing that give dangerous areas a wide berth.  “You plan as conservatively as you can, but you have a limited selection of routes that are approved six months in advance,” James says.

Dispatching for a global airline presents many challenges.  Professionals like James have become outstanding information gatherers, meteorology gurus, and consummate diplomats negotiating a wide range of cultures and national regulations.  For a dispatcher, curiosity is an important risk management tool.  Nothing is left to chance.

After Hurricane Matthew last week, MTPP/Port-au-Prince (Toussaint Louverture) became a central focus in relief efforts for Haiti. One of our OPSGROUP members, Airbus Industrie – took an A330 that’s normally used for testing, and flew it with supplies from France to Haiti.

Thanks Pedro @Airbus for this flight and trip report – and thank you for your contribution to the relief effort as well. All the crew members on board were volunteers.  We’re very proud to have you as a member of our group.

Report from Pedro Dias, Airbus Industrie:

RELIEF FLIGHT TO HAITI – FLIGHT AIB101 – AIRBUS A332

A request from NGO has raised to carry to Haiti 25 tons of medical equipment, first aid supplies, portable water station as well as a team of 40 people (28 military Rescuers, 4 doctors and nurse, 8 NGO staff). Airbus, thru the “Airbus Foundation”, responded positively and offers to help providing our A332. This aircraft is a test aircraft, partially equipped with pax seats and offer the full capacity of its cargo. On Monday 10th October we were ready to go!

First stop in LYS where all the NGO equipment was stored, after a short night Cargo and passengers were on board ready for a 9h30 flight.

AIB101 T/O @ 05H45UTC

Nice flight with some turbulence approaching the Caribbean Area… This long flight gave us the opportunity to talk with our fellow passengers and understand their motivation to go to such devastated places. Very interesting dialogue, which made all of us understand that we are lucky to be where we live.

After overflying a small part of the Island we’ve been cleared to land. On the ground a B747 was already there, offloading equipment sent by French government.

Handling was efficient but slow, as could be expected, and the airport was a bit messy due to Matthew but also to the heavy work on the airport, have to be careful of all trucks and excavators crossing taxiways and parking with no radio contact!!!

We had to wait for customs to clear our cargo, finally everything went smooth and after less than 2 hours on the ground we were ready to leave. Fuel was not available, things have changed since I guess, we planned a fuel stop at PTP (Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe) before flying back to Toulouse.

2h Flight to PTP, then 2h on the ground and after a 08h00 flight it was 0550Z on Wednesday when we landed at Toulouse after 24h around the clock for this tiring but really rewarding flight.

All crew and Airbus team were volunteers to help on this flight, we know that what we bring is a drop in the ocean but we expect it will help people there, and we hope many more flights will follow soon”

Thank you Airbus and Pedro for this report!

Oceanic and remote procedures updated: 12OCT The FAA this week issued a significantly updated version of their “Oceanic and Remote Airspace” procedures document. There’s a lot of good stuff here, even if you’re not operating an N-reg. Take a look at the PDF.

Rome Airport to close Friday 12OCT A reminder that LIRA/Rome Ciampino will close fully from Friday, for two weeks, as a result of urgently required runway maintenance. You can use LIRF/Fiumicino instead, but with significant restrictions.

LLBG/Tel Aviv starts winter runway maintenance work on 01Nov until 17Nov – Runway 21 will become primary landing runway, associated restrictions, not available as alternate during this time – check AIC 3/16.

LOWI/Innsbruck starting December 14th, the airport will introduce parking restrictions for private flights every week from 1800Z Weds until 1800Z Sunday.

TXKF/Bermuda Tropical Storm Nicole is approaching, expect some disruption and check before using as an alternate over the next few days.

HAZZ/Ethiopia The Ethiopian government has declared a six month State of Emergency from 9 October 2016. While details of emergency arrangements are not formalised, measures to restrict communication, movement and political expression are expected. Carry identification, avoid all large gatherings and protests, monitor the media for details on the application of the State of Emergency and follow all instructions issued by local authorities.

SPIM/Lima radar will be off the air on Friday from 19-21Z for repairs, procedural control, expect enroute delays.

EGGX/Shanwick. An exercise to test to the Volcano eruption response is underway, you may see multiple references to an eruption in Iceland – it hasn’t happened, it’s just a test. Stand down. Katla is also back to code Green.

UZZZ/Russia Karymsky volcano in the Kamchatka peninsula is active with colour code Orange, check before operating.

OKAX/Kabul FIR continues to have comms issues in the north east portion of Afghanistan airspace, VHF comms are not working on 118.3 or 128.5. There are some “Nordo” procedures, refer to AIP ENR 1.6-1.

MUFH/Havana has a couple of new entry points to the FIR – FUNDI and IKBIX – but they’re not for use yet, so don’t.

OPRN/Islamabad If operating to OPRN, be aware that on Saturdays and Mondays ATC will be practising non-radar procedural approach from 0500-0900Z until the end of the year.

SPJC/Lima has overnight parking restrictions from 14-21NOV, check with Airport company or handler prior to operating.

FZZZ/Democratic Republic of the Congo: the security picture is uncertain following recent political protests and there have been calls for further protests in Kinshasa, including on 19 October; you should follow travel advice and monitor local media for updates

SPZO/Cusco will not allow overnight parking from 10-20OCT.

FOZZ/Gabon Following the results of recent elections in Gabon, further strikes or demonstrations could occur in the capital Libreville and in Port Gentil. Avoid demonstrations, large crowds and rallies as they may turn violent.

UAZZ/Kyrgyz Republic Multiple embassies located in Bishkek have issued warnings to their citizens of an increased threat of a terrorist attack in the Kyrgyz Republic, possibly involving kidnapping and hostage taking, against Kyrgyz authorities and foreign diplomats during October 2016.

TQPF/Anguilla has introduced a ban on visitors from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, with a view to mitigating Ebola risk. Anyone who has been to those three countries in the last 21 days will not be allowed to enter.

VTSP/Phuket is suffering from ramp congestion, and will not allow non-scheduled flights to stay overnight until the end of the year.

WSSS/Singapore Changi has a couple of closures on 18 and 19 OCT due to a military exercise, check local Notams.

ZUUU/Chengdu has a new speed restriction inbound – fly 183 knots from IAF to IF, then 160 knots to 4nm. Notam U2748/16.

View full International Bulletin 12OCT2016

NAT changes postponed 05OCT Phase 2 of Reduced Separation on the North Atlantic NAT Tracks will not go ahead as planned, slowing down the rate of change in the NAT region. Read the article.

Matthew: Airport Update 05OCT The next 24 hours will dictate the impact that Hurricane Matthew will have on Florida, as it leaves Cuba and begins to track north through the Bahamas. Airports Update: for Haiti, MTPP/Port-au-Prince … Read the article.

DGAA/Accra, Ghana has a radar outage until Oct 19th in the southern area.

EGKK/London Gatwick has a Runway Occupancy Trial starting on 08OCT, all medium and large aircraft (A319 upwards) should plan to vacate at FR. Smaller aircraft vacate at E.

ENGM/Oslo has a fueler strike – plan to carry return fuel to avoid issues, until 10OCT at least.

OAZZ/Afghanistan Security reminder from Kabul: serious threats to safety and security exist in the city of Kabul and throughout Afghanistan. The threat of kidnapping is high. The potential also exists for protests to occur in Afghan cities at short notice. Militant groups usually plan attacks against locations and individuals with potential American connections, including: Afghan and U.S. government facilities, foreign embassies, military installations, commercial entities, non-governmental organization offices, restaurants, hotels, airports, and educational centers.Travel to all areas of Afghanistan remains unsafe due to the ongoing risk of kidnapping, hostage taking, military combat operations, landmines, banditry, armed rivalry between political and tribal groups, militant attacks, direct and indirect fire, suicide bombings, and insurgent attacks, including attacks using vehicle-borne or other improvised explosive devices.

MYZZ/Bahamas all Airports closed due to Hurricane Matthew with effect today until 1900Z on 07OCT.

YMHB/Hobart is extending the 12/30 runway, see AIC H30/16 for impact information.

FEFF/Bangui has an overnight airport curfew from 2200-0500Z until the end of the year.

DIAP/Ivory Coast It’s now possible to apply for a visa online; after registering and paying online, you can collect the visa on arrival at Abidjan airport.

LTZZ/Turkey The state of emergency will officially be extended until January 2017. The announcement came after a Cabinet meeting; President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also supported the extension. The state of emergency was put in place on 20 July following the 15 July attempted coup.

Typhoon Chaba While many eyes are on Hurricane Matthew, on the other side of the world Chaba is tracking north towards Japan after strongly impacting South Korea, however the system is weakening.

BIZZ/Iceland Volcano Katla downgraded to colour code Green, after last weeks concerns of elevated activity.

HAAB/Addis Ababa There are reports of anti-government protests taking place on the outskirts of Addis Ababa on Oct 4th. Unconfirmed reports indicate that protesters are attacking government property in the Akaki, Alem Gena, Burayu, Sebeta, Keta and Ayer Tena areas and that police officers have been deployed to the affected locations. Meanwhile, in the city center, shops have reportedly closed and there have been isolated reports of gunfire. Transportation to and from the affected areas has shut down.

LGZZ/Greece Greek trade unions have announced strike action that is expected to cause disruption to a number of domestic flights between 4 October and 8 October.

FVZZ/Zimbabwe The UNIVISA system has been suspended. If travelling between Zimbabwe and Zambia more than once either way, you should get a double entry visa; due to the ongoing cash liquidity crisis, authorities have announced a series of measures designed to stem the flow of US dollars out of the country; take sufficient cash to cover your needs for the duration of your travel.

View full International Bulletin 05OCT2016

Last week, we updated OpsGroup members with the changes on the NAT in the last 12 months with a special briefing. There have been many – MNPS being renamed HLA, new requirement for RNP4/10, new waypoints, airspace changes, the addition of Bodo to MNPS/HLA, and the introduction of RLAT – Reduced lateral separation: that is, half-track spacing for the first time.

The initial Phase of RLAT was introduced in December last year. Since then, there has been the option for suitably equipped aircraft (ADS, CPDLC and RNP4) to use one of the three new daily RLAT tracks, where aircraft are operating 30nm apart instead of 60nm.

The NAT plan at large called for Phase 2 to  follow this coming November, where the NAT Tracks would be ‘squashed together’ and all tracks would be RLAT above FL350, leaving only a couple of available tracks – spaced at 60nm, for everyone else.

However, we have been advised this week by the NAT working groups that this implementation in November will not go ahead as planned. There are some issues that Gander, Shanwick, and Iceland have to work through before their systems are ready to handle the next stage – meaning that the implementation of “RLAT only” is pushed out until, most likely, sometime next year.

So, for now, RLAT will stay on a maximum of three tracks – thereby slowing down the rate of change on the NAT, which probably comes as good news to operators. We’ll keep you posted.

A constantly evolving airspace: It’s been busy on the NAT! And not just traffic wise – there have been a record number of procedural and regulatory changes in the last 12 months. Here they are, in order of significance:

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The next 24 hours will dictate the impact that Hurricane Matthew will have on Florida, as it leaves Cuba and begins to track north through the Bahamas.

Airports Update: for Haiti,  MTPP/Toussaint L”Ouverture International and MTCH/Hugo Chávez International are confirmed reopened and operating normally, by the National Airport Authority Haiti (as of 1200ET).

For the Bahamas – the hurricane will severely impact operations at all Bahamas airports. As of 1100LT Wednesday (this morning), ALL Airports in the Bahamas are closed, by order of the Department of Civil Aviation and the Airport Authority.

For the USA – the first state to be affected will be Florida. Tracking of the hurricane will determine by how much. A slight turn to the left, and hurricane force winds will impact the entire coast, hardest hit will be the area from KPBI/Palm Beach north to KJAX/Jacksonville.  KMCO, KMIA, KFLL are among the large airports that will be affected.

Projected timings for eye of Matthew:

0800LT Thursday: Abaco, Bahamas
0800LT Friday: Palm Bay, Florida
0800LT Saturday: Savannah, Georgia –

Monitor:

• National Hurricane Centre
• NBC Hurricane Tracker
• OPSGROUP for current alerts

Icelandic volcano Katla has been raised to colour code Yellow by the Icelandic met office.

Katla lives beside Eyjafjallajökull, the volcano that closed much of Europe’s airspace for a week or so in 2010.

Colour code yellow means that there is increased activity, but no eruption … as of yet. 

It doesn’t mean that an eruption is ‘expected’ either, but given the proximity of Katla to the site of the major eruption in 2010, there may be correlation. Icelandic scientists have also said that an eruption of Katla is overdue.

For now, keep an eye on updates at http://en.vedur.is/weather/aviation/volcanic-hazards/

TZZZ/Caribbean Tropical Storm Matthew is expected to increase to Hurricane strength as it tracks across the Caribbean. Today, Barbados, Martinique and a number of other airports in the Windward islands have notified closures.

Monitor http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

Pakistan has closed part of its northern airspace (within the Karachi FIR) below FL330, amid tensions between India and Pakistan.

Overflying international traffic on the ATS routes A325, A454, A791, B505, G208, G210/214/216, M504, P518, and T385 will be restricted to a minimum enroute altitude of FL330. The full NOTAM is below.

A0938/16 – I) FOLLOWING ROUTE SEGMENTS OF INT’L ATS ROUTES WITHIN KARACHI FIR WILL NOT BE AVBL FROM SFC TO FL330 DUE OPERATIONAL REASONS: INTERNATIONAL ATS ROUTE ROUTE SEGMENT ======================= ============= A325 KC-JIWANI A454 KC-TAPDO A791/R462 JIWANI-KA B505 APELO-PI G208 KC-BINUR G210/M638 PG-KC G214 PG-IDEBA G216 ALPOR-KA M504 ALPOR-GOGUM N894 LATEM-DALDA P518 PAXUR-BINUR T385 ADGUL-TAPDO

II) ALTERNATE ROUTE FL330 AND BELOW: ================================ I. JI-PG-272000N 0650000E-IDEBA-SK-RK-TIGER/MOLTA/MULTAN VICE VERSA. II. JI-ASVIB/KEBUD-PG-272000N 0650000E-IDEBA-NH-KC/SAPNA VICE VERSA. III. ASVIB/KEBUD-PG 272000N 0650000E-IDEBA – NH-TELEM. IV. TASOP/RAMSA-KE-NH-IDEBA-272000N 0650000E-PG-KEBUD/ASVIB/JI. V. SAPNA/KC-NH-IDEBA-272000N 0650000E-PG-KEBUD-ASVIB/JI.

III) EXPECT CLIMB/ DESCEND TO / FROM FL340 REMAINING SOUTH AND SOUTH EAST OF KC UNDER ATC CLEARANCE. SFC – FL330, FM SEPT 26-29 AND 01-03 OCT BTN 0100-1130 AND 1400-1800, 26 SEP 01:00 2016 UNTIL 03 OCT 18:00 2016. CREATED: 22 SEP 13:30 2016

Today Flight Service Bureau has published ION05/16 – an updated Unsafe Airspace Summary, with new warnings for Turkey, and Iran, and a new map at safeairspace.net. This replaces 04/16 issued in August.

Turkey: 23SEP16 Germany B1289/16 Do not plan flights to LTAJ due potential ground to ground firing in the vicinity of LTAJ/Gaziantep Airport.

Iran: 09SEP16 FAA Notam KICZ 19/16 Exercise caution within Tehran FIR due military activity.

New information in the PDF is marked with a   I   beside it. Please distribute the PDF to anyone you like, we are keen to make sure as many operators as possible are aware of the risks.

• Download the new Unsafe Airspace Summary
• View the current map at safeairspace.net

One of the greatest gifts of having this wonderful group of people is the ability for any one of us to report something important, and let the rest of the group know. And for us, there is no more important area than Overflight Risk. Since MH17, there has been a constant stream of additional territories that need to be carefully watched – most recently, Kenya and North Korea. 

We’ve played around with a risk map for the group in various forms over the last few months, and out of that has come our safe airspace initiative (together with The Airline Cooperative).

OPSGROUP members have been instrumental in figuring out just how to gather this information, and present it in a really understandable form. Often, Airlines and Governments have more information than the private sector, and it can be really tough if you’re the lone dispatcher or single Chief Pilot in a GA/Charter/Business Jet operation. Thankfully, in the group, we have a Noah’s Ark of ops people – and so we get to see it from every perspective.

To join OPSGROUP, visit opsgroup.co/#Join.

This afternoon I took a boat across the river to the Jersey side  and looked back at New York City; amongst the skyscrapers in Midtown one stood out – the MetLife building. It seemed familiar – and I wondered why. I realised it was once the PanAm building: in a different era, this was the headquarters of Pan American World Airways.

Most interestingly, there was once a helicopter service, operated by PanAm in 1977, that connected downtown Manhattan with JFK, if you had a First or ‘Clipper Class’ ticket on a PanAm flight. The helicopter transfer, from the helipad on the roof of the PanAm building, took about 7 minutes – compare this to the 1 hour and 7 minutes it takes to get out to JFK these days – if you’re lucky.

Today, a couple of blocks west of the former PanAm building sits a lonely Concorde beside the Hudson, another nod to a time when aviation seems to have offered more convenience and speed than it does today.

So, the question is whether this is nothing more than nostalgia, or whether things were indeed, in some way, better back then. Everyone will have their own answer to that – we’ve lost  Tristars with elevators, DC-8’s with their chrome and diesel and smoke and crackle, 727’s and Bac 1-11’s with their rear airstairs – and what have we gained? The newest arrivals – the C Series, the A350, the 787 – are sleek, fuel efficient, and open up new routes that weren’t possible before – but are pretty unspectacular.

No doubt though, the generation that got to fly and operate these aircraft looked back on the days of Flying Boats and DC-3 with equal fondness. I wonder whether the aircraft coming off the production lines today will evoke the same thoughts.

In International Flight Operations, though, it must be said that things are much improved. Compared to the era that spans the 70’s to the 90s, we’ve now got vastly improved flight planning systems, more direct routes, much better navigation systems, and we’ve largely moved from SITA, phone calls and fax machines to email when it comes to organising those flights. For the Dispatcher and Planner, there is no doubt that life is far easier. Even ten years ago, trying to arrange handling anywhere outside the US and Europe would take days to set up – now, the same trip can be arranged in 30 minutes.

We do have some new challenges. Airspace safety – and the risk to our aircraft overflying unstable regions, is of more concern now than at any time in history. Since MH17 two years ago,  there have been many new areas to avoid. But how to know where, and why? Through The Airline Cooperative and OPSGROUP, we’ve worked as groups of Dispatchers, Controllers, and Pilots to share information so that when one person becomes aware of new information, everyone gets to hear about it. Our shared map shows the current status at safeairspace.net.

As a group, we’ve also been creating some new tools that help us – Aireport is our shared review site, where we can let each other know about good and bad experiences with Handlers, Airports, and ATC – whether it’s service, procedures, changes, or avoiding a fuel stop that’s going to cost you a fortune.

Maybe the biggest problem with all this new access to information is the overload one – the internet is the equivalent of a Shannon to Singapore NOTAM briefing. 80 pages of crap with a couple of important things stuck in the middle. Sometimes those important things are good to know, sometimes it’s critical information.

So how do you find those couple of critical things on the internet? You won’t have any trouble finding Aviation sites, but if you are managing an International Flight Operation of any sort – whether you’re the pilot, the dispatcher, the controller, the regulator, the ramp agent – whoever: how do you find out what’s new that will affect your flight.

That’s the question that bothers us at FSB every day of the week. We literally work on this every single day – and every day it becomes a little easier. Every Wednesday, we squeeze and condense the things that we’ve discovered this week into our weekly International Ops Bulletin – removing as much as possible until you’re left with only the critical stuff. The biggest source, and greatest help – is our amazing group of people in OPSGROUP.

Anyhow, I digress. Back to PanAm …

Three of the most recent headlines are:

• Rough Runway, Cash Only
• Don’t go here unless you want to be robbed by the CAA
• Inbound ATC was frightening

Tempting to joke that this sound like Miami, or Nice – but these are reviews of FZAA/Kinshasa, in the DRC – rated at 2.5, one of the lowest Airports on Aireport.

One report reads: “Don’t go here unless you like to be robbed by the CAA. I was told I was in big trouble for not having an MEL on a private airplane. 500 USD would [apparently] solve everything”

Continuing: “ATC is terrible, they wanted us to hold right over the airport in the middle of the T’storm we wanted to wait for to pass. I ended up telling him we would hold 15 miles out on the 090 radial. He wasn’t very happy about being over-ruled, but it worked”

And:  “People mill around the airplane looking for fuel drips to collect in their cans. Some guy told me he was a fueling assistant and wanted cash for his kind assistance. The handler is pretty much worthless, he just wants to collect the cash = $2700 USD for a fuel stop in a Falcon 900.”

There are some other horror stories in the database. SVMI/Caracas, Venezuela (“Handler demanded $9000 in Cash“);  VECC/Calcutta (“Immigration was a nightmare“); HEAX/Alexandria (“Handler tried the shakedown“)

There are also plenty of good reports – EGSS/London Stansted is “As easy as it gets in Europe“, EINN/Shannon, Ireland is “Absolutely outstanding“, and NFFN/Nadi, Fiji is given “Quick Turn, Inexpensive Fuel, and Perfect”

NZAA/Auckland, New Zealand stands out as getting consistently good reviews: “Very knowledgeable and helpful staff”, “Air Centre One is superb”, “Flawless from Gordy” … the crew at Air Centre One is clearly keeping their customers very happy. Nice work guys.

For all the ones in between – read for yourself: Aireport.co/reviews.

Taiwan ADS-B requirement 21SEP Yesterday, Taiwan pushed the requirement for ADS-B above FL290 for all aircraft, back to 2020 – as a fast approaching deadline of December this year was looming. Read the article.

Costa Rica volcano 21SEP MROC/San Jose, Costa Rica has reopened after the eruption of the Turrialba volcano on Monday. A risk of further closures continues. Read the article.

OPZZ/Pakistan Some airspace in the north of the country (Kashmir region) has been closed by the Pakistan CAA. Details are unclear but reports indicate Gilgit, Skardu and Chitral Airports are affected by the closure.

BIKF/Keflavik Departing KEF eastbound? Icelandic ATC would love you to file the following as a standard route: PIXUM PETUX ORTAV ODPEX, or 63N022W CELLO if you’re planning to cross 10W at GOMUP or south of.

EDDL/Dusseldorf has closed 05L/23R for a couple of days to remove a WW2 bomb. Some delays at peak times may result.

HLGT/Ghat, Libya Three foreign nationals were kidnapped along the road that leads to Ghat Airport on 19SEP, located in the Fezzan province along the southwest border with Algeria. The foreigners were construction workers employed by the Italian-owned Conicos company to service Ghat Airport. There are numerous armed militia and terrorist groups active in the area and the foreigners were said to be operating under discretion due to the security risk.

EDHL/Lubeck will closed on Oct 4th for repairs – all day.

ENGM/Oslo will introduce new RNP AR approaches in November, available to all runways. Auth from Norwegian CAA is required to use them.

FKKD/Douala now requires PPR 72 hours prior arrival, for non-scheduled flights, due to upcoming space restrictions as a result of WIP. You can make requests directly to Airport admin at pce.douala@adcsa.aero.

GBZZ/Gambia In a change to procedure, Overflight Permits, and Landing Permits for traffic operating to GBYD/Banjul, are now issued by the Department of Flight Safety Standards at the GCAA.

HCMM/Mogadishu has issued a security reminder to operators: “OPERATORS SHOULD EXER EXTREME CTN AND FULLY ASSESS THE POTENTIAL FOR RISKS TO FLT SAFETY AND SECURITY WHEN PLANNING OR CONDUCTING OPS INTO MOGADISHU AIRPORT DUE TO LACK OF INFORMATION ON ARMED CONFLICT AND LACK OF AERONAUTICAL INFORMATION.”

FAZZ/South Africa The CAA has updated its warnings for operators, with new guidance for two airspace blocks: that affected by the Syrian conflict – namely Baghdad, Damascus, and Tehran FIRs; and that affected by recent concerns over the Northern Sinai – their advice is to overfly at FL260 or higher.

LMML/Malta airshow coming up on 24-25 Sept, multiple restrictions, check before operating or filing as alternate.

FZZZ/DRC Congo Since September 19 large-scale demonstrations have been resulting in violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces in Kinshasa and elsewhere in the country. The situation is particularly tense in Kinshasa where violence has caused casualties. These demonstrations could continue over the next few days and the situation could further degenerate. The sole road to the Kinshasa airport could be blocked and some flights have been cancelled.

OJZZ/Jordan It’s White Stork migration season, and Jordan has issued warnings for all of its airports, for crews to be mindful of the high chance of presence of large flocks of them on arrival and departure.

SKED/Bogota has some comms issues on north/south bound routes to Peru (Lima FIR); 10 minute separation is applied betwen aircraft on these routes until at least Sept 26th.

KZZZ/USA For some good reading, the FAA (thanks Andy for passing this on), have updated their Aviation Weather guidance doc. This is the first revision to the document since 1975.

Input: ATC, Pilots, Dispatchers: Any topical items that you think should be going out to the community? Let us know, and we’ll get your message out there. tellus@opsgroup.co.

View full International Bulletin 21SEP2016

The fast approaching deadline of December 2016 for all aircraft within the Taipei FIR above FL290 to be ADS-B equipped, has been given a new date of implementation – 2020. Clearly, the amount of operators not so equipped has rendered the ADS-B plan unachievable.

Yesterday, Taiwan issued AIC 06/16 confirming the new date, and also adds that aircraft are no longer required to have ADS-B Out operational approvals by the State of Registry.

As things stand, then, you technically need ADS-B to operate on B576 and B591 – but if ATC radar is functioning normally, that rule is also waived. So, in effect, check back in 2020.

References:

• Taiwan AIC 06/16 

MROC/San Jose, Costa Rica has reopened after a two day closure following the eruption of Turrialba.

As of 1100 a.m.Tuesday , the Civil Aviation Directorate reported that approximately 12,000 passengers had been affected, and that 120 flights had been cancelled during that lapse. The SJO airport was closed from early Monday afternoon due to intense volcanic eruptions of the Turrialba Volcano located some 50 km southeast of Alajuela.

The only other airport affected was Pavas, a smaller domestic airport.

We’ve been notified of an ATC strike planned for France on 14 and 15 September – that is, Wednesday and Thursday this coming week. This follows the normal pattern, where ATC and Area Control Centres and Airports will see union members striking, thereby preventing most flights from arriving and overflying in France during this period.

This is shorter notice than usual for a French ATC Strike, and no confirmation is likely until Monday, but we’d put the likelihood of this going ahead at around 50% at present.

Typhoon for Tokyo 07SEP Tropical Storm Malou is tracking towards Tokyo and expected to intensify. Multiple Japanese airports are likely to be affected … Read the article

New Shanwick / NAT procedure 07SEP Shortly all FANS 1/A flights will get a “CONFIRM ASSIGNED ROUTE” message from Oceanic ATC (Shanwick, Reykjavik, Gander) shortly after entering their OACC, to mitigate against Gross Nav Errors. Read the article

HHZZ/Eritrea The US State Dept has issued a Travel Warning for Eritrea which warns of the risks of travel to Eritrea due to the unpredictable security situation along Eritrea’s borders and restrictions imposed by local authorities on travel within the country. All foreign nationals, including U.S. government employees, must obtain permits to travel outside of the capital Asmara. This restriction limits the ability of the U.S. Embassy to provide consular/emergency services anywhere outside of Asmara. This replaces the Travel Warning dated May 6, 2015. Avoid travel along all border regions. In June 2016, fighting in the Ethiopia-Eritrea border region reportedly caused several deaths. Continued political and military tensions between Eritrea and the neighboring countries of Djibouti and Ethiopia pose the threat of possible renewed conflict. Due to regional sensitivities, the State Department also recommends against travel to the border region with Sudan.

WSSS/Singapore will be super busy during the Grand Prix weekend 14-18SEP. Ask for a slot before operating, if you don’t get one, use Seletar instead.

RPLL/Manila has a couple of new procedures for non-scheduled flights. First, traffic arriving between 2200-0400Z daily – the peak period – should look for a slot from Manila FSS – who are at mfss.staff@gmail.com, or call 2 944 2098/99. Once you have the slot, get your EDCT from Manila ATC. If operating domestically, file the flight plan between 2 and 24 hrs prior departure.

DNBC/Bauchi is a new airport designator in Nigeria for the Tafawa Balewa International Airport.

VLVT/Vientiane, Laos The 28th and 29th ASEAN Annual Heads of State Summit is being held in Vientiane from 5 to 9 September; there will be road closures and delays in arrivals and departures of both international and domestic flights at Wattay International Airport.

FOZZ/Gabon has seen multiple security warnings in the last few days, following a disputed election result. Widespread, violent demonstrations, rioting, looting, and road blocks continue, both in Libreville and other cities throughout Gabon. At this time the airport in Libreville is open and operational and commercial flights are available. The US Embassy recommends U.S. citizens remain in a safe location and avoid non-essential movement.

MMSD/Los Cabos, Mexico Hurricane Newton has passed and Los Cabos airport has officially re-opened its commercial operations, no major damage reported.

EBOS/Ostende Air BP is no longer providing Jet A1 fuel here.

EKOD/Odense will be closed on 22SEP due to an event. Jet fuel not available. You can email twr@hca-airport.dka for further.

HELX/Luxor Radio, which previously operated on HF5859 and 2562, is now off the air.

LZIB/Bratislava will required slots for all operations 15-17SEP, small GA aircraft not welcome on these days. Email slots@bts.aero.

FNZZ/Angola The WHO has provided an update on the yellow fever outbreak in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The WHO estimates that there have been 6,000 suspected and 1,000 laboratory confirmed cases of yellow fever since the outbreak began in Angola in December 2015. More than 400 people have died from the mosquito-borne disease since that time. However, the last confirmed case in Angola was on 23 June and in the DRC was on 12 July, which the WHO believes is an encouraging sign. Nevertheless, the organization still characterizes the outbreak as “serious” and as requiring “sustained, controlled measures.” Thus far, 22 million people in Angola and 14 million people in the DRC have received vaccinations against yellow fever as part of a large-scale initiative that was prompted by this outbreak.

SARI/Cataratas is permanently downgraded to RFF Category 6.

URRR/Rostov wins the prize this week for clogging up the Notam system; the runway there is closed 29 times between now and October 21st, and they have therefore issued 29 Notams. Perfect.

SPQU/Arequipa, Peru is not allowing overnights until 11SEP due capacity. Non-scheduled flights limited to 3 hours parking.

View full International Bulletin 07SEP2016

Tropical Storm Malou will bring heavy rains and strong winds that will likely cause flooding in Japan this week.

The storm is expected to remain a tropical storm until Friday as it moves along Japan’s eastern coastline. Airports affected: Wakkanai, Rishiri, Kushiro, Nemuro Nakashibetsu, Sapporo Chitose, Aomori.

JMA expects Malou to continue strengthening and have maximum sustained winds of 101.8 km/h (63.3 mph) by 06:00 UTC on September 8. At the time, the center of Malou is expected to be located about 84 km (52.7 miles) south of downtown Tokyo, moving NE at 39 km/h (24 mph). Last week Typhoon Lionrock lashed north-eastern Japan and the northern island of Hokkaido, leaving 18 dead and nine missing.

End of Canada Leniency 31AUG Earlier this year Canada introduced a requirement for an eTA – like the US Esta. For a while, it was OK to travel without one. That’s ending in September … Read the article

Two hurricanes inbound Hawaii 31AUG Madeline is first, followed by Lester – both are tracking west towards Hawaii with landfall expected – should it occur – on Wednesday and Thursday. Read the article

LTCC/Diyarbakir, Turkey Kurdish militants fired rockets at Diyarbakir Airport in southeastern Turkey. The militants reportedly targeted a security check-point outside the airport lounge. All personnel were taken inside terminal building for safety reasons. No flights were disrupted, and there were no reports of casualties.

EHAM/Amsterdam It’s that time of year again, watch out for the migrating geese in Amsterdam at sunrise and sunset. They operate between 300 and 700ft without transponder.

VVVV/Hanoi FIR If you’re cutting a line through the Hanoi FIR on the W1 airway, you’ll be held down at FL290 unless you have RNAV5. ATC says so.

DNZZ/Nigeria Members of aviation unions staged rallies at four major airports in Nigeria to protest the planned concession of the facilities to private investors. Protests occurred at Abuja (DNAA/ABV), Kano (DNKN/KAN), Lagos (DNMM/LOS) and Port Harcourt. So far, the protests have not disrupted ops. Lagos has been suffering from some power outages lately as well.

SOCA/Cayenne, French Guyana has staff shortages, and from September 1st will not accept any diversions unless in an emergency. Do not plan SOCA as an enroute alternate. If inbound, with an ETA for SOCA 0200-1100Z, you need to call for an arrival slot. If you need it, ATC phone is +594 594 35 9372 or 9302.

OIZZ/Iran has approved the use of its airbases by Russian fighter aircraft; Russia has notified intention to launch missiles in the direction of Syria from the Caspian Sea fleet. The Russian Air Force has deployed six Tu-23M3 BACKFIRE bomber aircraft and multiple Su-34 FULLBACK strike fighter jets to Hamedan Air Base (OIHS/NUJ).

ORBB/Baghdad FIR/Iraq The Iraqi government has given permission to the Russian MoD to use its airspace in support of air operations in Syria. Russian media outlets are also reporting the Russian MoD has requested use of the FIR for the “passage of cruise missiles” as well, highlighting the potential for such activity to occur in the coming days from the airspace over the Caspian Sea.

LTZZ/Turkey Russia has lifted it’s ban on charter flights to Turkey.

HAZZ/Ethiopia Reports indicate that flights to HAGN/Gondar (GDQ) and HABD/Bahar Dar (BJR) have been indefinitely suspended. The suspension of flights comes amid ongoing unrest in Gondar and Bahir Dar, as well as in other cities in the Amhara and Oromia regions, over the marginalization of ethnic groups by the Tigray-dominated Ethiopian People’s Democratic Front (EPRDF) regime. Ethiopian government officials have not commented on the cancellation of flights to those cities or international flights to Addis Ababa, which has not been largely affected by the unabated unrest occurring in outlying regions.

WSSS/Singapore air quality has deteriorated to a Pollution Standards Index (PSI) of 105, due to the cross-border haze from Indonesian slash-and-burn fires. The agricultural practice, during which farmers burn a patch of land in order to clear land for new crops, creates haze, which then drifts through the region. Experts believe the level of pollution — which in 2015 cost the region more than 700 million US dollars in damage and severely disrupted the aviation sector — will be lower in 2016 due to a rainy dry season.

NFNA/Suva, Fiji is closed during September for runway repairs. Available wirh 30 mins PN in an emergency. Call them on 9906102.

SUEO/Montevidedo Air Traffic Controllers strike until end of September, closures and departure restrictions in place. Info is sketchy, got some updates? Let us know … bulletin@fsbureau.org.

View full International Bulletin 31AUG2016

Madeline is first, followed by Lester – both are tracking west towards Hawaii with landfall expected – should it occur – on Wednesday and Thursday.

Monitor :

• Central Pacific Hurricane Center and the
• JTWC