New VFR Flight Plan Services

[AggieMike88]

From the recent issue of FAA's Safety Briefing magazine.

Leidos Flight Service’s new EasyActivate, EasyClose, and Close Reminder services will automatically be turned on for all registered users of www.1800wxbrief.com. These services let you activate or close a VFR flight plan simply by clicking a link in an email or text message that’s sent to you 30 minutes before departure and arrival. These actions are recorded and included in your pilot history. Reminders are sent when a VFR flight plan is not closed within 20 minutes of the expected arrival time. These services will be automatically applied to all of your VFR flight plans, regardless of whether you file via phone call or online.

Initially, the service will be turned on for email delivery, but you can change it to, or add, text message delivery. Click on the EasyActivate/ EasyClose link at the top of the Pilot Dashboard at www.1800wxbrief.com.

There are other options for electronically activating and closing VFR flight plans. You can activate on www.1800wxbrief.com from the Pilot Dashboard, including assumed departures up to 30 minutes from current time. You can close VFR flight plans from the website as well. Also, several of the flight planning and electronic flight bag (EFB) vendors that have integrated with Leidos Flight Service provide VFR activation and closure directly in their apps or websites.​

 

[exncsurfer]

For those of you who are internet/data impaired(on your phones), don't get too exited about the text to close option, it still requires internet to follow the link. Not sure why they couldn't just have you reply to the text to close/open since sometimes text works and data does not, so you end up having to call them anyway.(or use radio/etc.)

 

[iamtheari]

Just be careful to put in an accurate time of departure. The default if you activate via the web interface is to assume you took off at the time your flight plan estimated. Don’t ask how I know.

 

[WannFly]

Duats have a similar service too to remind pilots to close flight plan via text. I filed from the website the night before, got confirmation that it was filed. At hold short called them on radio to open it, they could find it and I sat there for 10 mins creating a plan over the radio.... so....

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

[keen9]

Just be careful to put in an accurate time of departure. The default if you activate via the web interface is to assume you took off at the time your flight plan estimated. Don’t ask how I know.

Ahhh, that must be what happened the time I went to close my flight plan, and I already had a message from Leidos that it was closed already. Doh! I was slightly past the ETA based the time I opened it, but well past based on the filed time.

 

[Palmpilot]

Ahhh, that must be what happened the time I went to close my flight plan, and I already had a message from Leidos that it was closed already. Doh! I was slightly past the ETA based the time I opened it, but well past based on the filed time.

Does that mean that if you had been lying in a field somewhere waiting for rescue, help would never had come because they automatically closed your flight plan when your ETA arrived?

If so, it would seem to defeat the purpose.

 

[iamtheari]

Does that mean that if you had been lying in a field somewhere waiting for rescue, help would never had come because they automatically closed your flight plan when your ETA arrived?

In my experience, they closed it after calling the FBO at my destination and learning that I had arrived safely. I don't think there's anything automatic.

 

[Palmpilot]

In my experience, they closed it after calling the FBO at my destination and learning that I had arrived safely. I don't think there's anything automatic.

OK, now it makes sense.

 

[John Collins]

The only thing that I am aware of that is automatic is that a flightplan will be closed/removed from the system if not activated within 2 hours of ETD. Activation is not automatic, the pilot needs to respond to the EasyActivate to cause the activation, no response, no activation. I would not respond to the activation until I was ready to depart at the runway end.

 

[iamtheari]

The only thing that I am aware of that is automatic is that a flightplan will be closed/removed from the system if not activated within 2 hours of ETD. Activation is not automatic, the pilot needs to respond to the EasyActivate to cause the activation, no response, no activation. I would not respond to the activation until I was ready to depart at the runway end.

I did that. It defaulted to actual time of departure being the same as my ETD. I got my instrument rating to avoid repeating the experience