Story ID: 
ForeFlight Facilitates Surface Ops 
By: Matt Thurber
Caption: The aviation app-maker is helping commercial operators meet FAA guidance to allow own-ship display on airports.
Word Count: 317
Aviation app developer ForeFlight has released features and capabilities focused on enterprise users of its ForeFlight Mobile Apple iOS application. The company also worked with Southwest Airlines to help the airline capture GPS data to support a “system accuracy assessment in pursuit of own-ship authorization under FAA AC 120-76C guidance.”

The own-ship authorization under Advisory Circular 120-76C opens the door for commercial operators to use mobile device-based electronic flight bags (EFBs) such as iPads and Android tablets to display own-ship position, but only for ground operations. “These operators are limited to using own-ship depiction during airport surface operations and at less than 80 knots groundspeed,” according to ForeFlight. To help operators comply with these limitations, ForeFlight has added a new feature–the Limited mode–in the “Enable Ownship” setting. The Limited mode applies the 80-knot limitation, then automatically removes own-ship display after takeoff, the company explained.

The database accuracy and system quality statement for meeting AC 120-76C guidance is available on ForeFlight’s website. According to the company, “The letter includes a statement regarding airport map database accuracy and quality, as well as information about features in ForeFlight Mobile useful for collecting GPS information to support a system accuracy assessment.”

ForeFlight is also offering decompression test reports for new iPad models, including the iPad mini 3 Retina. The decompression test was done while the iPad was running ForeFlight Mobile, and ForeFlight is providing the report on its website.

 For enterprise users that need to distribute documents to EFB users such as pilots, ForeFlight has added integration with the Box cloud service. Other cloud services available include Amazon S3 and Dropbox.

ForeFlight also announced new features in Version 6.8, with added taxi charts and more than 2,700 FBO locations now mapped on FAA and ForeFlight airport diagrams. This helps pilots see precise FBO locations at unfamiliar airports.