Over the coming days we will remove aircraft registrations from the flight schedules and replace them with flight itinerary numbers.

We are doing this because it's more realistic; in reality, daily flight schedules/duties (aircraft itineraries) are assigned to a particular aircraft type but not a specific aircraft registration. This means any aircraft of that type can operate that set of flights, providing it's at the start point and not assigned to do something else. One particular aircraft reg doesn't do the same flights all year, and the itineraries are only assigned to a specific aircraft a few weeks in advance.

This is necessary because airlines need flexibility; aircraft do not have 100% availability, they have to undergo frequent maintenance. It also allows airframes to be rotated between different duties, so specific airframes don't accumulate excessive hours, cycles or wear (e.g. if one aircraft operates in to a short runway all year, its brakes will wear faster).

We're also adding a feature where you can search by flight itinerary, which means you can simulate an entire day's duty (in your own time of course!).

Great addition Chris; now since I've just completed EDDL-EPWA I looked up the Itinerary number for that route it's 88 did a search and now yours truly is on itinerary 88 eight flights in all starting out of EDDL arriving ENZV great I love this!  Though I won't be flying all those flights in one day!!!   I'd like to but the mrs.....I can hear it now 'are you on the computer again'  .  Anyhow thanks Chris.

I'm glad you like it, I did the scheduling with this in mind from the beginning so even our oldest flights (such as itinerary 2, which is J$1 domestic flights out of LCY) work with it  Itinerary 88 is a great, you get to visit five different countries in just one day's duty.

The turnarounds are tight, most of them are only 15 minutes (with the odd half hour one thrown in to absorb delays), if you can get away with doing two consecutive flights on the sim you're going to be very busy! It gives you a (hopefully fun  ) idea of how intense high-frequency flying can be for crews.

Some of the itineraries can be a bit samey, just shuttling back and forth between the same two airports all day. This has been done intentionally as some of them will be upgraded to larger aircraft, but that's what real crews get too sometimes (a friend of mine spent months flying between Aberdeen and Scatsa with Eastern Airways)! Fortunately, you get to pick and choose 

PS: I'm thinking of changing the name from itinerary to duty, what do you chaps rekon?

Quote from: Chris Liu on Jan 28, 2014 01:18
I'm thinking of changing the name from itinerary to duty, what do you chaps rekon?

Itinerary works for me, but; how about, 'day roster'? 

I considered that but thought newbies might confuse it with the pilot roster. Aircraft Itinerary is simply what I've always referred to them as in internal documents.

Mr H tells me they refer to them as "duties" at easyJet, I may have to ask our resident Operations Adviser (a different Mr H) what they call them at Ryanair.

Yeah good point Chris.....

Quote from: Steve Prowse on Jan 28, 2014 01:06I'd like to but the mrs.....I can hear it now 'are you on the computer again'  .

Just turn the sound up...drown her out 

Quote from: Chris Liu on Jan 28, 2014 01:18Some of the itineraries can be a bit samey, just shuttling back and forth between the same two airports all day.

I once did triple Belfast so Liverpool -> Belfast -> Liverpool -> Belfast -> Liverpool -> Belfast -> Liverpool....ugh talk about ground hog duty! 30 mins flying time...Up down up down...you get the idea!





So I suppose its somewhat realistic!

Drown her out....impossible  ,  but a nice thought....