ForeFlight enables clearances via text

The PDC feature replaces clearance delivery via radio, speeding IFR departures, ForeFlight co-founder and CEO Tyson Weihs said in a news release. The text-based (or emailed) clearances include the filed route, cleared altitude, transponder code, departure frequency, and any special instructions that may apply. A PDC eliminates the need for a verbal clearance from air traffic control.

“Customers who have flown with the new PDC and D-ATIS features don’t want to fly without them,” Weihs said. “These two valuable tools make flight and avionics setup efficient by eliminating a set of radio communications, they reduce controller workload, and help get the aircraft to the runway faster, which improves on-time performance. These are powerful new additions to what has become one of the industry’s most technically advanced, fast, and accurate flight planning services available.”

Current users will need to register to take advantage of the new feature. Details on that process, along with a video, and a list of 76 airports where the service is now available, are posted online. The PDC and D-ATIS services are included with ForeFlight’s Performance Plus (a $299 annual subscription) and Business Performance subscription plans.