Another Entrant In The Aero-iPad Wars Shows Promise...

It's a war, I tell you... just about the time that you figure out which super-duper new bit of iPad-centric software is the end-all and be-all for your aviation pursuits, someone comes along and challenges the whole works. Here's another way to make use of your iPad for flight planning purposes. iFlightPlanner is a suite of web-based tools for general aviation pilots, accessible from your web browser or your mobile device. Plan and log your flight from your home or on the go.

The iFlightPlanner gives the pilot a range of customizable options that interface with Google Maps to chart your route of flight on an interactive, online map overlayed with a VFR sectional, or IFR low or high altitude charts.
A new feature is the ability to "rubber band" a route, making quick changes to allow pilots to deviate around weather or find fuel. The software uses a color-coded system that will quickly identify airports that report METARS, which can be decoded into plain language, and other important information.

iFlightPlanner can also give pilots weather briefing information, store up to five different aircraft profiles for those pilots with access to different airplanes, calculate weight and balance, and contains an airport directory which the company website says is updated every 56 days directly from the FAA database. All of those features are available from a desktop or portable device. A pilot logbook is also available online.

iFlightPlanner recently announced that it has become a partner with the Aspen Connected Panel system, allowing flight plans created on iFlightPlanner to be uploaded directly to Aspen panel avionics. The service comes in two flavors; free for basic flight planning functionality, or a subscription with additional features  which can be purchased monthly for $9.95, quarterly for $24.95, or annually for $89.95.

FMI: www.iflightplanner.com, www.aero-tv.net, www.youtube.com/aerotvnetwork, http://twitter.com/AeroNews