Ops secret text messaging

Here's a brief insight into the 'secret world' of airline operations and text messaging.

Working for a company that represents and handles airlines at our station, we are obliged to send short text messages to the airlines operations department and other companies that may need to be notified updating them on the progress, or slow-gress of the flight.

Consider a flight for example that departs from my station. Once airborne, we must send a message to the airline HQ as well as the handling company at the destination airport(s) notifying them of the aircraft's departure times, estimated arrival time at destination, and any other significant information such as passengers that require special assistance. The airline HQ receives these messages and it acts as a voiceless method of being able to track their aircraft in real time. Similarly, the workers at the destination airport now know an arrival time for the aircraft and can plan accordingly, so they are ready for its arrival. These types of messages are known as MoVemenT messages, or MVT messages. We send one for every flight we handle, using a specific (primative, but functional) network that we're all connected to.

When the aircraft arrives downroute, the station will send a message back to us and also to the airline's ops department, detailing its touchdown time and on-blocks time. This lets both parties know that the aircraft has arrived safely. These messages are known as Arrival messages.

There are endless other types of messages we use; some are just variations on the message and others are more specific to the loading of the flight. Load Distribution Messages, or LDM are sent in a similar manner. These messages explain how the aircraft has been loaded, such as how much cargo and baggage is onboard, and how its distributed within the holds. These are particularly necessary for multi-stop flights, so we know in advance where the cargo and bags that need offloaded at our station, are located in the holds.

LDMs must be sent before the aircraft is due to arrive down route. Obviously it wouldn't be much use sending a LDM after the aircraft arrives, as we'd have already opened it up and started looking for our cargo and bags. In most instances, LDMs are sent automatically even before aircraft departure, once the flight has been finalised or closed.

Another variation of a LDM is a CPM, or Container/Pallet distributon Message. These are more common with larger, widebody or cargo aircraft. It lists the positions of each ULD or pallet in the holds, together with what's loaded into it, such as cargo, baggage, crew bags or simply empty.

All these messages are sent via a network called SITA, many will be aware of it or even use it and others will have at least heard of it. If you don't fit into either group, fear not, as you aren't missing out on much! Messages sent via SITA are charged for, and usually by the number of characters. As such, all the messages have a strict format of abbreviations and codes that look like random numbers and letters and mean very little to the untrained eye. They take time to get used to, but after that reading them becomes second nature. I can read MVTs, LDMs or CPMS much quicker than I can read some silly text message from a friend using 'txt sp8k.

So there you have it, a quick insight into the voice-less exchange of information between many parties in the airline industry.