Ocean Software :Taming Military Aviation Operations with FlightPro®

When a young Finnish instructor pilot returned from an exchange program at NATO Flying Training Canada, he had increased his flying proficiency, but he had also learned of an Australian company called Ocean Software, and a unique program called FlightPro®. Leading from that initial experience, the Finnish Defense Force acquired FlightPro®, joining a worldwide user base that includes eleven countries and supports eight militaries, with more contracts expected this year.

In its inception, Ocean Software built a training management system for Australia's Air Force pilot training unit. Twenty years later FlightPro® remains the Air Force’s system of record and Ocean Software’s prime customer. “With technology evolutions incorporated over the years, FlightPro® now runs the entire Australian Air Force from a training and operational standpoint,” says a proud Adam Hogan, Vice President, Ocean Software. A fully-fledged Software Solutions Developer (SSD) with a specific focus on government and military customers, Ocean specializes in solutions for squadron operations management and training, logistics management, and maritime surveillance.

“Our global deliveries are all FlightPro® implementations, and the key differentiator is scheduling,” notes Hogan. FlightPro® has a unique ability to schedule a dynamic military aviation environment using a simple drag-and-drop interface, mimicking the old “whiteboard and magnet” concept for organization of resources. The software provides real-time messaging when operating several squadrons, allowing easy collaboration. This results in an increase in efficiency, while integrating the tools to manage ongoing training and competency tracking, ultimately improves safety. According to Hogan, military aviation regularly blends operational tasking and training needs, so it’s important to be able to schedule, manage, and report within a single system. Excelling in this requirement, FlightPro® simultaneously manages 50+Canadian squadrons across all aircraft and mission types, rolling up data for headquarters while providing the toolset for individual units to safely and efficiently manage their tasking.

Another customer, a large flight training operation, was struggling with their legacy custom software. In their complex training environment, a single morning of bad weather regularly caused chaos and a significant loss of training. In urgent need of a solution, and aware of the product’s success in a similar operation, the client acquired FlightPro®.