Hi,Lufthansa Systems today announced that its first app, Lido/iRouteManual, is now available on the Apple App Store. The company’s goal is to enable its customers to take advantage of mobile technologies. It therefore plans to release some of its IT solutions in the form of iPad apps, starting with Lido/iRouteManual. This aviation app gives airline pilots and flight simulator fans access to professional Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) navigation charts for 40 airports worldwide on the iPad. The app is available for USD 19.99. “The technological revolution embodied by smart phones and the iPad has reached airlines and their customers, both of whom are using these new opportunities for information and communication,” said Dr. Gunter Küchler, member of the Executive Board of Lufthansa Systems. “Our customers expect services to evolve, and they want more flexibility and mobility in their personal and business lives. This is what we are offering with our apps. These new communication channels will bring us even closer to our customers so that we can better understand their needs and meet them with innovative IT solutions – also in the form of apps. Having apps on the popular Apple App Store will also strengthen our brand awareness in the B2B segment and our new B2C target group.” Lido/iRouteManual is aimed at three groups of customers: • Airline pilots who are already using Lido/RouteManual charts from Lufthansa Systems in their day-to-day work can now use the app as an additional information source. • Airline pilots who are not yet using Lido/RouteManual charts can use the app to familiarize themselves with the charts. • Flight simulator enthusiasts who want to “fly” with professional IFR charts can use the app to access these charts for the first time. After Lido/iRouteManual has been downloaded, the airport maps appear under the user’s favorites on the iPad. Users can rotate and zoom in and out on the aeronautical charts using the iPad’s typical multi-touch gestures. The application can also display an airport’s surroundings in Google Maps as long as the user is connected to the Internet. Lufthansa Systems aims to expand the app for airlines so that professional pilots can use the navigation charts for all of their flights. This expansion is planned for version 1.1 which will be available in the first quarter of 2011. Pilots will then be able to access navigation charts for their airline’s entire route network via the app. Once they have been downloaded, the charts can be used even without an Internet connection, so pilots will have information for hundreds of airports and thousands of pages of navigational material at their fingertips on the iPad. Updated charts will be provided for download every week so that the latest versions are always available for pilot briefings.Jan-Paul

Me thinks me needs an iPad now :(

navigation charts for 40 airports worldwide

+++ Lido/iRouteManual contains access and update service to charts of the following airports:+ Europe: Amsterdam, Athens, Brussels, Frankfurt, Geneva, Helsinki, London, Madrid, Munich, Nice, Paris, Prague, Rome, Seville, Vienna, Zurich.+ North America: Boston, Los Angeles, Montreal, New York.+ South America: Bogotá, Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo.+ Asia: Bangkok, Colombo, Delhi, Dubai, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Peking, Seoul, Singapore, Tokyo.+ Africa: Addis Ababa, Cairo, Johannesburg, Mauritius.+ Australia: Melbourne, Sydney.

I was surprised to see the LRM become avail to the public as such a bargain. Then I saw it's only a few select airports. Too bad since the screenshot suggests it has way more than these, but maybe they plan to expand the list in the future. Thanks for the hint although no option for me, yet I'm just interested.

Nice idea but a bit pricey for us 'enthusiasts' given the small selection of charts. I wonder if a purchase now will mean a free upgrade in the future when more charts become available??!

Doesn't seem to bad to me, honestly, price-wise. We'll see how they continue down the path. I think they're headed in the right direction.

Definitely, although Navigraph is still the cheaper alternative and you get free updates once you have bought the charts, if I'm not mistaken. However it's not usable on the iPad.Still, it's a nice idea and I've often drooled over the iPad for use as a virtual kneeboard!

Definitely, although Navigraph is still the cheaper alternative and you get free updates once you have bought the charts, if I'm not mistaken.

Doubtful, but I don't use it, so I can't say for sure. I just know that when I go to buy my own books at the FBO, they cost money, so their electronic counterpart probably costs money, too.

Definitely, although Navigraph is still the cheaper alternative and you get free updates once you have bought the charts, if I'm not mistaken.

No, updated charts cost 2 credits each (per airport that is), which translates roughly to 20 Eurocents a piece.

Ah, wasn't sure if you had to pay for the update or not...Still, I like the idea of the Lufthansa app, but I can't see it costing as little as this when they start adding more charts. It would be good if you could pay for selected charts as per Navigraph.

We use these charts at work. I still prefer the Jepp charts over these.