PHOENIX, June 15, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell
Aerospace (NYSE: HON) announced today that Virgin Atlantic Airways
will be the first airline to install its new flight management
service to help airlines increase efficiency and improve fuel
conservation. The new Honeywell Flight Management System (FMS)
Datalink Service will provide pilots with access to updated and
customized wind and temperature information to better optimize the
vertical profile of a flight and improve fuel predictions. Virgin
Atlantic will implement the system on its unique, long-haul Airbus
A330 and A340 fleet, where time and fuel savings can be
maximized.
"Our Virgin Atlantic and Honeywell teams have worked together to
develop and introduce this excellent service," said Phil Maher, executive vice president,
Operations, Virgin Atlantic. "I am confident that the fuel
efficiencies and operational improvements that we experience as a
result of this will have a very positive impact on our operation,
our customers and our people."
The new Honeywell FMS Datalink Service taps into the company's
connectivity and flight management expertise to provide
continuously updated wind and temperature data directly to the
aircraft in-flight from Honeywell's Global Data Center (GDC), an
innovative flight support service.
Access to the latest forecast data for wind and temperature is
especially effective on long flights where small changes in the
forecasted wind or temperature can have a major impact on the
optimization of altitude selection, top-of-descent point
calculation, and speed management. Each of these elements can
significantly improve fuel efficiency.
"The cost of fuel is one of the largest operating costs for our
customers, and we created the first flight management system in the
1970s in response to the industrywide fuel crisis to help customers
save money and fuel," said John
Bolton, president, Air Transport and Regional, Honeywell
Aerospace. "Now we're evolving our flight management systems by
offering a new service that will enable them to provide optimized
flight-level recommendations to flight crews, which will give
Virgin Atlantic pilots the tools they need to make in-flight
decisions that will save time and greatly lower fuel consumption —
two things that directly impact their bottom line."
In addition to making the latest weather forecast available
in-flight, the Honeywell FMS Datalink Service also uploads the
initial flight plan into the FMS upon request, saving time and
allowing the flight crew to concentrate on other critical
pre-flight tasks. Without the FMS Datalink Service, pilots would
usually input the flight plan and weather information manually
before the flight.
About Honeywell FMS Datalink Service
Honeywell has been a leader in FMS since it created the
technology in the 1970s. Traditional FMS makes its calculations
based on information such as wind and temperature predictions at
particular locations and altitudes along an airplane's flight path.
To make those predictions, pilots usually have to manually input
weather data before takeoff. However, weather forecasts along a
flight route become outdated, especially on long-haul flights that
are several hours long. Making the move to current, in-flight
weather information with the FMS Datalink Service is the next step
in flight management evolution.
Supporting Resources
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solutions for more fuel-efficient automobiles and airplanes, more
direct and on-time flights, safer flying and runway traffic, along
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safer, faster, and more efficient and comfortable
transportation-related experiences worldwide. For more information,
visit www.honeywell.com or follow us at @Honeywell_Aero and
@Honeywell_Turbo.
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified
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with aerospace products and services; control technologies for
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