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European IFR FPL

I'd be grateful for any views on the new FPL entry requirements (beginning yesterday) for Items 10 and 18 for European IFR flights (above FL95 - I believe that this may affect the requirement for a PBN/ entry).

My current set up, in a TB20, is a KLN94 and autopilot certified for BRNAV, otherwise standard equipment, with Mode S.

I believe, after a good deal of looking around at the guidance documents, that Item 10 should be SDFGR/S, and Item 18 PBN/B2 NAV/GPS RAIM, but I would be far from surprised if I’m wrong.

AP
Oxford, United Kingdom

I'm sure that's fine. I don't think "NAV/GPS RAIM" is really necessary. PBN/B2 tells them you have GPS RNAV5, which is all they need to know.

Have you tried the eurofpl.eu wizards? They're pretty good.

I have a KLN94 (BRNAV) and Mode S too and I make it

SDFGRY/S (I have an 8.33 radio hence the Y)
PBN/B2

but the /B2 is unclear. Other combinations seem equally good.

There is a very good detailed document here which on page 2 suggests /B2 is right for a KLN94 because /D2 requires PRNAV and a KLN94 cannot be PRNAV approved.

It doesn't appear that Eurocontrol is doing any kind of checking of the PBN parameters versus the aircraft type, or versus any other database, however, so it looks like if you over-specify it doesn't cause a flight plan rejection.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

I was chatting to the chief pilot of a business jet crewing company who had phoned up Eurocontrol and was told they aren't really checking. Lots of the options are irrelevant for Europe but are there as an ICAO standard.

Darley Moor, Gamston (UK)

Very helpful posts, all, many thanks

AP
Oxford, United Kingdom

I was chatting to the chief pilot of a business jet crewing company who had phoned up Eurocontrol and was told they aren't really checking. Lots of the options are irrelevant for Europe but are there as an ICAO standard.

It is interesting to wonder what the powers to be plan to do with this stuff.

It is known that Eurocontrol boot out any FL200+ flight plans without a "Y" (8.33), and similarly for RVSM a bit higher up.

They could use a database of PRNAV approvals (which in theory could exist) to check against somebody filing PBN/D2 for a C152 with just a VOR receiver, but I don't think this will ever happen, because of the difficulty of compiling PRNAV avionics approval status (LOA etc) for every jet flying from potentially every country in the world.

There is also no evidence (AFAIK) that ATC use anything whatever in the declared equipment list for any purpose whatever (in Europe; I heard they do in Australia).

Airports (or Eurocontrol) certainly don't check PRNAV approvals against filing to fly a PRNAV SID/STAR. If they did, much/most jet traffic would grind to a halt, because lots of airports have gone all out to publish loads of PRNAV SIDs/STARs. I while ago I was flying out of Zurich and they gave me a PRNAV SID, which I declined with the reason, and they told me to just ignore it and fly the track

Let's hope this stuff isn't used to screw GA one day...

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

I file DFGYRS/S in 10 and PBN/B2D2S1 in a PRNAV and BRNAV equipped a/c.

EGTK Oxford

It is known that Eurocontrol boot out any FL200+ flight plans without a "Y" (8.33), and similarly for RVSM a bit higher up.

In the IFPS Manual section 75

Then the system builds a profile and continues with the following checks: 
• RAD restrictions, 8.33kHz and RVSM compliance.

It is interesting to wonder what the powers to be plan to do with this stuff.

As far as I know, apart from 8.33 and RVSM checking, which has been there for a long time, the only plan is to do BRNAV checking.

CFMU 2012 REQUIREMENTS

3.1.1 B-RNAV Checking 
CFMU has received traffic management requirements based on an aircrafts B-RNAV capability 
i.e. routing constraints etc. 
[UR.FPL.CEQPT.004] new (added in CTOR) 
The IFPS mechanisms should be adapted such that compliance with B-RNAV is only achieved 
when the indicator ‘R’ is present within Field 10a plus one or more of the PBN/ indications B1, B2, 
B3, B4, B5.

Sometimes the documentation put out by CFMU can be hard to get your head around, but generally they do a thorough job of thinking about stuff from a system concept PoV and publishing that.

Thanks, bookworm.

Given that BRNAV is now mandatory for all "Eurocontrol enroute IFR in CAS" kind of stuff and not just FL095+ as it used to be (I don't recall seeing it defined anywhere but presumably it is not required for an ad-hoc crossing a bit of UK Class D, otherwise the flight training business would have some fun) this must mean that no "real" IFR flight plan should get validated unless one declares BRNAV ("R").

If they do validate on the "R" together with some property of the route/level, where the hell do they set the threshold?

On a quick read of that CFMU 2012 doc I can't see anything.

They should allow e.g. EGKA DCT SAM DCT EGHH, 4000ft, without "R", but disallow say this at FL180, and in between these two extremes there will be some threshold.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom
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