Join the weekly international ops call!

OPS CHAT is a conversation about this week’s changes and dangers affecting International Flight Ops, open to everyone!

It’s on every Tuesday at 1300 UTC.

It’s for Pilots, Dispatchers, ATC, and anyone else involved in international ops – and here are the key things we look at every week:

• New risks and changes this week affecting airspace, ATC, airports, and international ops
• The top 5 Ops Alerts published for OpsGroup members this week
• Conversation and chat
• Unsolved mysteries – unanswered questions from the Ops Group/Flight Ops slack channels.
• New member intros and group updates
• A general Q&A – bring a good Q and we’ll match it with an A.

When is it on? Tuesday at 1300 GMT/UTC/Z. That means: 6am LA (sorry!), 9am New York, 2pm London, 3pm Amsterdam. Bring a timezone appropriate drink (If you’re in a Brooklyn a coffee, if you’re in Berlin a coffee martini?) and join us for a group chat about all things ops.

OPS CHAT – register

If you’re stuck on something in particular (a pesky overflight permit for Peru, perhaps …) – ask your question and we’ll find someone that knows. For the weeks highlights, we’ll pop up a few maps and things to help show what’s happening, but mostly this is really just a chat and pretty casual. As you might have gathered.

How long is it on for? Ah, 30 minutes maybe? Or longer if things get interesting.

How do I join? You will need:

• 1x computer device (example here)
• Electrical power
• A face (because we like seeing you)
• A watch (set an alarm for Tuesday 12.59Z)
• Aaaand a Zoom registration: here.

So in short – register and then show up. Turn on your video, and take part. Easy!

Any other questions? Email the team!

Hi Members,

We had another busy OPSCHAT call this week, along with our new quiz!

You can watch the full replay on your Member’s Dashboard.

Here’s what we talked about:

• USA – Fuel prices are on the up. We talked about why, and what this means for ops. The CDC mask mandate – they extended it, and then stopped it. We try and make sense of things.
• Europe – There are some big aviation events coming up. Aero 2022 and EBACE. Get your parking spots booked soon!
• Peru – There was a major ATC strike last week. For now it’s back to ops normal, but keep an eye on contingency procedures – you may need them.
• Pacific – More Russian rocket firings on April 27. A slightly confusing picture, but basically two possible spots where the debris could fall, the PACOTS aren’t affected.
• Bermuda – It will be downgrading its RFF until July. Does anyone have info on when this becomes an issue? 

Unsolved Mysteries

The EASA Environmental Portal. Yep. Still a bit of a mystery. Should you hear back when you’ve submitted your info? Share your ordeal registering if it can help others.

MMEL to MEL – Has the UK changed the rule since leaving EASA? If you’re operating somewhere with an MMEL, have your LOA (O95) with all your Ms and Os in order and you should be ok.

New Mysteries

GMMX/Marrakech – has anyone been recently?

Recovery documentation after catching Covid – how can I get back to the US?

OPSQUIZ

Congrats to this week’s winner! We have a whole load of new prizes to choose from (we promise they’re cool!). Tune in next week for the next OPSQUIZ.

As always, the team is here to help with any operational support, info or questions. You can reach us on news@ops.group, or via the slack channels #flightops and #questions.

To watch the replay of the OPSCHAT in full: head over to the dashboard. We hold a new one every week on Tuesdays at 2000z, click here to register and join us live. See you next week!

Hello members,

We had another busy OPSCHAT call this week.

You can catch the full reply on your Member’s Dashboard.

Here’s a rundown of what we talked about.

• Russia – The FAA has issued a new Notam which clarifies the ban on aircraft operated for Russian interests in US airspace. We also discussed that leased aircraft are being held in Russia, re-registered and operated domestically despite the termination of lease agreements. This raises concerns about future business, along with safety.
• Iraq – An Iranian missile attack occurred in Northern Iraq on March 13, likely targeting US interests there. This may escalate tensions in the region. We discuss whether overflights are actually safe (especially for US operators), along with emergency considerations if you plan to enter the ORBB/Baghdad FIR.
• GPS Interference – We took a brief look at military interference testing in the US this month in California, South Carolina and Alaska. There may be no signal within 400nm of each test site for extended periods. The impact for dispatch may be low, but pilots need to continue reporting any cases of jamming or signal loss to ATC and the FAA. If there’s an emergency, they can stop it.
• Unusual happenings in Europe – Widespread reports this week that a large military drone malfunctioned and flew undetected through the airspace of Hungary and Romania, before crashing in Croatia. It likely came from the conflict zone in Ukraine. We discussed the risk to civil aviation in neighbouring countries as a result of the conflict, and where there are no airspace warnings. We also touched upon the ongoing issue of GPS jamming in Turkey.
• Danger Club – It’s back! We’re running a special session for the Teterboro Users Group’s meeting at 10am EST on March 16, and all are welcome to join – visit teterborousersgroup.org for details. OPSGROUP specific sessions will resume on March 24, with all new scenarios.

As always, the team is here to help with any operational support, info or questions. You can reach us on team@ops.group, or via the slack channels #flightops and #questions.

To watch the replay of the OPS CHAT in full, head over to the dashboard.

Hello members,

We had another busy OPSCHAT call this week!

The full replay is available in your Member’s Dashboard.

Here is an outline of what we discussed.

• Russian sanctions – Western operators may be breaking the rules without realising it. They apply to aircraft owned, registered, benefitting or controlled by Russian interests. The rules remain open to interpretation – especially the terms ‘benefit’ and ‘controlled.’ We discussed this in detail, along with examples of operators who have found themselves on the wrong side of the rules.
• Jet fuel shortage at Russian airports – Reports that major operators have been cancelling flights to Moscow due to being unable to uplift fuel.
• Leased aircraft – There may be difficulty moving aircraft on lease by foreign lessors out of Russia.
• EU-LISA – From Sep 2022, carriers bringing passengers to most countries in Europe will need to be registered with the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) for passenger screening. We chatted about who or what ‘Lisa’ actually is, what an ‘air carrier’ actually means and what the requirements will be for both commercial and private flights. We’ve also written a new article with everything that we know about it.
• OPSGROUP Danger Club  – It’s back, starting with a presentation for the Teterboro User’s Group (TUG) on March 16. Chris and Bec will be presenting the first one for the year. All are welcome to register and watch – visit teterborousersgroup.org for details. OPSGROUP specific sessions will resume on March 24, with all new scenarios.
• ETOPS for Part 91 Ops – It’s not required by the US FAA regs, but are operators still applying limits on their ETPs for diversions? How about MELs that restrict aircraft from operating on ‘extended range’ routes? We took a brief look at this conundrum, along with EASA differences in Europe.
• One engine, de-pressurised. The question was asked, how do you know how long crew oxygen will last for? For remote diversions and no passengers on board (e.g. ferry flights), it is possible you may not want to immediately descend to FL100. We briefly discuss.
• OPSGROUP assistance – Offer from Team to assist where possible with any operational support, information, questions – as well as #flightops or #questions in the OPSGROUP Slack channels.

To watch the replay of the OPS CHAT in full, head over to the Dashboard.