Navigation Data
Summary
Updated: 5/18/2024 Read time: 5 min
Up-to-date navigation data and charts are a must wherever you fly. This includes data onboard aircraft avionics and electronic flight bags. Between Jeppesen and ForeFlight, you can obtain the necessary coverage; substitute Garmin as required.
Details
Data Types
The following will walk you through operating a Pilatus PC-12NG, equipped with a Honeywell avionics system, utilizing an iPad as an electronic flight bag, and subscribing to Jeppesen and Foreflight data. Garmin users, there is a lot that carries over.
Pilatus PC-12NG aircraft utilize INTEGRATED NAVIGATION DATA SERVICE (INDS) for navigation data and chart subscriptions. INDS is a Jeppesen and Honeywell partnership that packages Jepp data in a way Honeywell likes to serve up to the Epic and APEX avionics platforms via a HONEYWELL IDM IOS APP.
Data comes in three flavors:
Navigation Data (waypoints, airports, frequencies, radio navigation stations, etc.)
Charts (maps and instrument procedures)
Terrain (separate database but comes with Nav Data subscription)
IMPORTANT: Out-of-date navigation data is obsolete for IFR flying. You should not be flying IFR unless it is current. This point makes the FAA’S LIST OF FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS. Scroll to the 2nd and 3rd questions from the bottom for more details. VFR flying with out-of-date data is allowed.
The FAA’s interpretation is looser than most other ICAO counties. Beyond the borders of the US, it is expected you will have current charts and data, and EU RIP – formerly known as a SAFA inspection (extensive ramp check) includes checking for this. An exception is when data expires while you are en route. In that case, verifying the data before using it is up to you.
Jeppesen
Since 1934, Jeppesen has been the great aggregator of data. Beyond the charts and maps that most have seen since instrument training, they also produce volumes called Airway Manuals, containing thousands of pages of technical information. Worldwide government-produced aviation data, published as Aeronautical Information Publications (AIPs), are consolidated into these massive manuals. This is great, but you still have to sift through a lot of data. Tons of it is just not relevant to any given operation.
The Jeppesen navigation data and chart databases needed for the trip are available for subscription by geography. The terrain data is worldwide only. You can purchase either a trip kit or an annual subscription for databases. The trip kits are valid for 28 days and are about one-third of the yearly option price.
Navdata is available over three geographies:
Americas/ Atlantic
Australasia/ Pacific
Europe/ Africa/ Middle East
Charts have more options, the essential ones for an Atlantic crossing are US 48 states, Canada/ Alaska, Atlantic, and Europe.
Once the data is purchased, INDS will release the navigation databases as two separate files: one from the US to Iceland (APV), the other from Greenland to Europe (APX). When uploading into the avionics, you can only install one navdata file at a time, so you must plan to swap databases enroute on the trip. Charts are a single database for all your subscribed territories.
Foreflight
An EFB covers the FAR requirement for necessary charts. Several iPad app providers can handle this, but ForeFlight is a more holistic choice.
ForeFlight does a great job taking the Jepp data and presenting it easily. Within ForeFlight, you can link your Jeppesen subscription and access all the Jepp data you purchased for your aircraft. You can connect up to two mobile devices per license on a ForeFlight account. ForeFlight has additional subscription options above and beyond Jeppesen’s data necessary for the trip.
THE CORE FOREFLIGHT SUBSCRIPTION IS THE PERFORMANCE PLUS PLAN. This plan unlocks extremely accurate, aircraft-specific flight planning capability for domestic and international operations. Add three regions to the business plan: the US, Canada, and Europe. The region subscriptions include government-produced charts and documents from the local aviation authorities. In total:
Business Performance: $360/yr/license
Canada and Europe Regions: $200/yr/license
Total subscription: $1000 (min 2 licenses required)
International VFR charts are available if desired—there are lots of options to sort through. Either go with Air Million or Rogers charts. Air Million is probably not detailed enough for serious VFR flying in Europe. Its scale makes for a very clustered depiction of the airspace. Rogers is the most Sectional-like depiction. These maps are available per country or Europe-wide.
In addition, ForeFlight offers a DISPATCH SUBSCRIPTION. Dispatch adds capabilities such as advanced oceanic flight planning, eAPIS, and routing constraints. It will calculate points of safe return, equal time points for multiple emergency scenarios, ETOPS, and route validation tools for challenging flight plans in Europe. If you forgo the assistance of a 3rd party handler, this deserves serious consideration.
One final PC-12NG-ism (PC-12NGX exempt): the terrain database is worldwide coverage, but the TAWS system is specific to one of three regions globally. One crossover point is between Greenland and Iceland. Switching between regions requires swapping TAWS cards in the avionics unit under the floorboards. After crossing Greenland, a cyan TAWS CAS message will be displayed. Once on the ground in Iceland, you will need to do the necessary database uploads for Europe data, and it’s a good time to swap the TAWS card if desired. If you have a MEL, you can defer the TAWS message.
Aviate
Subscribe to the necessary Jeppesen (or Garmin) and Foreflight coverages well before the trip. Download and familiarize yourself with the Foreflight data and documents, specifically Jeppesen Airway Manuals and foreign state AIPs.
