From PocketFMS Manual - Selecting ARTCCs/FIRs

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has divided the global airspace into Regions, which are in turn subdivided into Flight Information Regions (FIRs). US users probably know these FIRs as Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCCs). For example, the Netherlands airspace is situated in the European Region, and is divided in only one FIR, the Amsterdam FIR (ICAO code: EHAA). PocketFMS uses these FIR boundaries to determine which data to load and use. It is therefore important that you at least select one FIR you'll be flying in.

A global view of Flight Information Regions is available at http://gis.icao.int/Flexviewer/

After selecting File | Select ARTCCs/FIRs you will be presented a scrollable list (Fig. 2.), each line consisting of a tick box, an ICAO FIR identifier and the plain name of the FIR. By scrolling up and down you can browse the list, and place tick marks with every FIR you want to load data for. Remember that the more FIRs you select, the longer the AeroData will take to download, and the less memory will remain free on your Mobile Device.

Name:  pocketfms-fir-selection.JPG
Views: 3445
Size:  34.1 KB

When File | Select ARTCCs/FIRs is selected and a FlightPlan is still open, PocketFMS will display a message that the FlightPlan must be closed first to prevent problems in case one or more elements from the active FlightPlan become deleted due to the corresponding FIR's removal. Loading a FlightPlan without all the required FIRs selected will result in PocketFMS removing the legs that are outside the available FIRs. After selecting the FIRs press OK.

Please note the following:
  • If you have made changes to the FIR selection, you will need to download (Intermediate) AeroData for the changes to become visible. Until that time, the existing AeroData set remains in effect. PocketFMS will remind you of this.
  • If you select a FIR that you haven't ever selected before, it might also be necessary to download additional MapData. However, if you have previously downloaded maps for a FIR, they will remain available if you unselect and later reselect that FIR.
  • If you're using any other than the most recent version of PocketFMS, the available AeroData may not be compatible anymore. No AeroData is available for legacy versions.
  • It's not always possible to have airspaces and objects that are positioned on or close near FIR boundaries assigned to the proper FIR automatically. To assure that all airspaces and objects in a FIR are shown, the adjacent FIRs should be selected as well.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

© 2003 - 2013 The PocketFMS Foundation. Last modified on 28-Nov-2012