Thales announced the launch of a new generation TopWings Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) software application suite designed by pilots for pilots.
This product will be designed in cooperation with IT experts and pilots from Air France and numerous other airlines to gather their insights and understand their operational needs.
Air France announced its intention to cooperate with Thales on the development of this solution. The airline intends to equip its entire fleet with this new EFB software solution. Other airlines of the Air France-KLM group have expressed their interest for the TopWings solution.
Already at the leading edge of disruptive innovation and EFB solution- deployment, Air France will be closely involved in the definition of the software suite.
The result of this collaborative innovation approach will be an EFB solution designed to provide pilots with fully digitized access to all information required for the entire journey, from the moment they leave home to the moment they return. Operational efficiency improvements will also provide significant cost reduction for operators.
The new software system will integrate a wide range of functions such as e-Documentation, e-Briefing, e-Logbook or e- Weather, in one solution with a graphical user interface designed by man-machine-Interface specialists.
The solution will be fitted on the entire Air France fleet the system’s connectivity functionalities, pilots will have access to real- time information that enhances their situational awareness.
The new software will also allow advance mission planning to assist in all ancillary actions, including medical checks, passport renewals, all the way up to recurrent training alerts. The new generation TopWings is the first true “digital assistant” for pilots.
“We are convinced that this new generation EFB application suite will be a major step towards the digital transformation of our Flight Operations,” Sébastien Veigneau, Air France pilot and project leader on Digital Transformation of Flight Operations, says. “It will aggregate all the information pilots need for their missions, to achieve a better situational awareness that improves flight safety and operational efficiency. At last, we will have a solution designed by pilots for pilots.”