5-1-1. Preflight Preparation

a. Every pilot is urged to receive a preflight briefing and to file a flight plan. This briefing should consist of the latest or most current weather, airport, and en route NAVAID information. Briefing service may be obtained from an FSS either by telephone or interphone, by radio when airborne, or by a personal visit to the station. Pilots with a current medical certificate in the 48 contiguous States may access toll-free the Direct User Access Terminal System (DUATS) through a personal computer. DUATS will provide alpha-numeric preflight weather data and allow pilots to file domestic VFR or IFR flight plans.

REFERENCE-
AIM, FAA Weather Services, Paragraph 7-1-2, lists DUATS vendors.

NOTE-
Pilots filing flight plans via "fast file" who desire to have their briefing recorded, should include a statement at the end of the recording as to the source of their weather briefing.

b. The information required by the FAA to process flight plans is contained on FAA Form 7233-1, Flight Plan. The forms are available at all flight service stations. Additional copies will be provided on request.

REFERENCE-
AIM, Flight Plan- VFR Flights, Paragraph 5-1-4.
AIM, Flight Plan- IFR Flights, Paragraph 5-1-8.

c. Consult an FSS or a Weather Service Office (WSO) for preflight weather briefing. Supplemental Weather Service Locations (SWSLs) do not provide weather briefings.

d. FSSs are required to advise of pertinent NOTAMs if a standard briefing is requested, but if they are overlooked, don't hesitate to remind the specialist that you have not received NOTAM information.

NOTE-
NOTAMs which are known in sufficient time for publication and are of 7 days duration or longer are normally incorporated into the Notices to Airmen Publication and carried there until cancellation time. FDC NOTAMs, which apply to instrument flight procedures, are also included in the Notices to Airmen Publication up to and including the number indicated in the FDC NOTAM legend. Printed NOTAMs are not provided during a briefing unless specifically requested by the pilot since the FSS specialist has no way of knowing whether the pilot has already checked the Notices to Airmen Publication prior to calling. Remember to ask for NOTAMs in the Notices to Airmen Publication. This information is not normally furnished during your briefing.

REFERENCE-
AIM, Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) System, Paragraph 5-1-3.

e. Pilots are urged to use only the latest issue of aeronautical charts in planning and conducting flight operations. Aeronautical charts are revised and reissued on a regular scheduled basis to ensure that depicted data are current and reliable. In the conterminous U.S., Sectional Charts are updated every 6 months, IFR En Route Charts every 56 days, and amendments to civil IFR Approach Charts are accomplished on a 56-day cycle with a change notice volume issued on the 28-day midcycle. Charts that have been superseded by those of a more recent date may contain obsolete or incomplete flight information.

REFERENCE-
AIM, General Description of Each Chart Series, Paragraph 9-1-4.

f. When requesting a preflight briefing, identify yourself as a pilot and provide the following:

1. Type of flight planned; e.g., VFR or IFR.

2. Aircraft's number or pilot's name.

3. Aircraft type.

4. Departure Airport.

5. Route of flight.

6. Destination.

7. Flight altitude(s).

8. ETD and ETE.

g. Prior to conducting a briefing, briefers are required to have the background information listed above so that they may tailor the briefing to the needs of the proposed flight. The objective is to communicate a "picture" of meteorological and aeronautical information necessary for the conduct of a safe and efficient flight. Briefers use all available weather and aeronautical information to summarize data applicable to the proposed flight. They do not read weather reports and forecasts verbatim unless specifically requested by the pilot. FSS briefers do not provide FDC NOTAM information for special instrument approach procedures unless specifically asked. Pilots authorized by the FAA to use special instrument approach procedures must specifically request FDC NOTAM information for these procedures. Pilots who receive the information electronically will receive NOTAMs for special IAPs automatically.

REFERENCE-
AIM, Preflight Briefings, Paragraph 7-1-4, contains those items of a weather briefing that should be expected or requested.

h. FAA by 14 CFR Part 93, Subpart K, has designated High Density Traffic Airports (HDTAs) and has prescribed air traffic rules and requirements for operating aircraft (excluding helicopter operations) to and from these airports.

REFERENCE-
Airport/Facility Directory, Special Notices Section.
AIM, Airport Reservation Operations and Special Traffic Management Programs, Paragraph 4-1-21.

i. In addition to the filing of a flight plan, if the flight will traverse or land in one or more foreign countries, it is particularly important that pilots leave a complete itinerary with someone directly concerned and keep that person advised of the flight's progress. If serious doubt arises as to the safety of the flight, that person should first contact the FSS.

REFERENCE-
AIM, Flights Outside the U.S. and U.S. Territories, Paragraph 5-1-10.

j. Pilots operating under provisions of 14 CFR Part 135 and not having an FAA assigned 3-letter designator, are urged to prefix the normal registration (N) number with the letter "T" on flight plan filing; e.g., TN1234B.

REFERENCE-
AIM, Aircraft Call Signs, Paragraph 4-2-4.

5-1-2. Follow IFR Procedures Even When Operating VFR

a. To maintain IFR proficiency, pilots are urged to practice IFR procedures whenever possible, even when operating VFR. Some suggested practices include:

1. Obtain a complete preflight and weather briefing. Check the NOTAMs.

2. File a flight plan. This is an excellent low cost insurance policy. The cost is the time it takes to fill it out. The insurance includes the knowledge that someone will be looking for you if you become overdue at your destination.

3. Use current charts.

4. Use the navigation aids. Practice maintaining a good course-keep the needle centered.

5. Maintain a constant altitude which is appropriate for the direction of flight.

6. Estimate en route position times.

7. Make accurate and frequent position reports to the FSSs along your route of flight.

b. Simulated IFR flight is recommended (under the hood); however, pilots are cautioned to review and adhere to the requirements specified in 14 CFR Section 91.109 before and during such flight.

c. When flying VFR at night, in addition to the altitude appropriate for the direction of flight, pilots should maintain an altitude which is at or above the minimum en route altitude as shown on charts. This is especially true in mountainous terrain, where there is usually very little ground reference. Do not depend on your eyes alone to avoid rising unlighted terrain, or even lighted obstructions such as TV towers.

5-1-3. Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) System

a. Time-critical aeronautical information which is of either a temporary nature or not sufficiently known in advance to permit publication on aeronautical charts or in other operational publications receives immediate dissemination via the National NOTAM System.

NOTE-
1. NOTAM information is that aeronautical information that could affect a pilot's decision to make a flight. It includes such information as airport or primary runway closures, changes in the status of navigational aids, ILSs, radar service availability, and other information essential to planned en route, terminal, or landing operations.

2. NOTAM information is transmitted using standard contractions to reduce transmission time. See TBL 5-1-1 for a listing of the most commonly used contractions.

b. NOTAM information is classified into three categories. These are NOTAM (D) or distant, NOTAM (L) or local, and Flight Data Center (FDC) NOTAMs.

1. NOTAM (D) information is disseminated for all navigational facilities that are part of the National Airspace System (NAS), all public use airports, seaplane bases, and heliports listed in the Airport/Facility Directory (A/FD). The complete file of all NOTAM (D) information is maintained in a computer database at the Weather Message Switching Center (WMSC), located in Atlanta, Georgia. This category of information is distributed automatically via Service A telecommunications system. Air traffic facilities, primarily FSSs, with Service A capability have access to the entire WMSC database of NOTAMs. These NOTAMs remain available via Service A for the duration of their validity or until published. Once published, the NOTAM data is deleted from the system.

2. NOTAM (L)

(a) NOTAM (L) information includes such data as taxiway closures, personnel and equipment near or crossing runways, and airport lighting aids that do not affect instrument approach criteria, such as VASI.

(b) NOTAM (L) information is distributed locally only and is not attached to the hourly weather reports. A separate file of local NOTAMs is maintained at each FSS for facilities in their area only. NOTAM (L) information for other FSS areas must be specifically requested directly from the FSS that has responsibility for the airport concerned.

3. FDC NOTAMs

(a) On those occasions when it becomes necessary to disseminate information which is regulatory in nature, the National Flight Data Center (NFDC), in Washington, DC, will issue an FDC NOTAM. FDC NOTAMs contain such things as amendments to published IAPs and other current aeronautical charts. They are also used to advertise temporary flight restrictions caused by such things as natural disasters or large-scale public events that may generate a congestion of air traffic over a site.

(b) FDC NOTAMs are transmitted via Service A only once and are kept on file at the FSS until published or canceled. FSSs are responsible for maintaining a file of current, unpublished FDC NOTAMs concerning conditions within 400 miles of their facilities. FDC information concerning conditions that are more than 400 miles from the FSS, or that is already published, is given to a pilot only on request.

NOTE-
1. DUATS vendors will provide FDC NOTAMs only upon site-specific requests using a location identifier.

2. NOTAM data may not always be current due to the changeable nature of national airspace system components, delays inherent in processing information, and occasional temporary outages of the U.S. NOTAM system. While en route, pilots should contact FSSs and obtain updated information for their route of flight and destination.

c. An integral part of the NOTAM System is the Notices to Airmen Publication (NTAP) published every four weeks. Data is included in this publication to reduce congestion on the telecommunications circuits and, therefore, is not available via Service A. Once published, the information is not provided during pilot weather briefings unless specifically requested by the pilot. This publication contains two sections.

1. The first section consists of notices that meet the criteria for NOTAM (D) and are expected to remain in effect for an extended period and FDC NOTAMs that are current at the time of publication. Occasionally, some NOTAM (L) and other unique information is included in this section when it will contribute to flight safety.

2. The second section contains special notices that are either too long or concern a wide or unspecified geographic area and are not suitable for inclusion in the first section. The content of these notices vary widely and there are no specific criteria for their inclusion, other than their enhancement of flight safety.

3. The number of the last FDC NOTAM included in the publication is noted on the first page to aid the user in updating the listing with any FDC NOTAMs which may have been issued between the cut-off date and the date the publication is received. All information contained will be carried until the information expires, is canceled, or in the case of permanent conditions, is published in other publications, such as the A/FD.

4. All new notices entered, excluding FDC NOTAMs, will be published only if the information is expected to remain in effect for at least 7 days after the effective date of the publication.

d. NOTAM information is not available from a Supplemental Weather Service Locations (SWSL).

TBL 5-1-1
NOTAM CONTRACTIONS