10.2.1: Aeronautical Information Services (AIS)

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The Aeronautical Information Services (AIS) can be defined as:

The AIS provides the necessary information to ensure aeronautical operations develop with safety, regularity, economy and efficiency. All the information is made public and distributed air navigation central services.

This information included in the AIS is composed of:

Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP).
AIP Amendments (AMDT) and Supplements (SUP).
Notice to Airmen (NOTAM)-SNOWTAMs.
Aeronautical Information Circulars (AIC).

The AIP is a basic aeronautical information manual. It contains permanent information and long-term changes and it is used essentially for air navigation and airport operations. It contains information on availability of routes, navigation charts, etc. both for airports and en-route areas.

Regular amendments (AMDT) include small changes and editorial corrections in the AIP. The most important one is the AIRAC cycle, an AIP revision issued every 28 days with information on the airspace, including routes. The SUP complement or vary the information contained in the AIP. They contain temporary information that requires extensive texts and/or explanatory graphics.

NOTAM are notices distributed by means of telecommunication containing information concerning the establishment, condition or change in any aeronautical facility, service, procedure or hazard, the timely knowledge of which is essential to personnel concerned with flight operations. NOTAMs are issued by national authorities for a number of reasons, such as:

Hazards such as air-shows, parachute jumps and glider or micro-light flying;
Flights by important people such as heads of state;
Closed runways, taxiways, etc;
Unserviceable radio navigational aids, lights, etc.;
Military exercises with resulting airspace restrictions;

An Aeronautical Information Circular (AIC) is a notice containing information that does not qualify for the origination of a NOTAM or for inclusion in the AIP, but which relates to flight safety, air navigation, technical, administrative or legislative matters.

Further information can be consulted in ICAO’s Annex 15 [1].