Leidos Flight Service released a new feature that allows pilots to activate and close VFR flight plans via the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system without talking to a specialist.
This upgrade makes opening and closing VFR flight plans easier than ever and saves pilots valuable time by eliminating hold times. The enhancement is available to all pilots who have a free online 1800wxbrief.com account linked to a primary phone number. To sign up for an account, click Create Account and enter a primary phone number associated with your account. When you call 1-800-WX-BRIEF, the system will automatically search to see if you have a flight eligible to Activate or Close and provide menu options.
The system will not offer these menu options if there is no flight plan on file. You can activate your VFR flight plan up to 30 minutes in the future to ensure that you have enough time to get into the air before the flight plan is active. You can easily close a flight plan when your flight has concluded by calling Leidos Flight Service from the primary phone number linked to your account. If you call from a different phone number, the system cannot look up your flight plan. Note that the IVR system will not offer services if it detects more than one proposed flight plan with the same departure time, and pilots will be unable to use the system to close flight plans that have entered Search and Rescue status. Visit 1800wxbrief.com to learn more about the IVR feature and future updates.