history
2008 DAE
In early 2008, f:wz was acquired by DAE Services, the aviation technology division of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise. With DAE’s resources and reach, f:wz has strengthened its global footprint and is pursuing a full range of collaboration and integration scenarios with other DAE businesses, industry partners and customers. This strategic move further solidifies f:wz’s position as the market leader in cost optimizing flight management solutions.
2007 New features and Enhanced Data Services
f:wz start the development of a number of new features, such as the terrain resolver, take-off performance, MEL handling, alerting, flight planning automation, pilot web briefing and more (see our product description).
Enhanced Data Service Department is launched and takes over the complete data handling: ARINC, weather and NOTAM loads, restriction handling, airport capabilities etc.
2006 United Airlines
After an extensive evaluation United Airlines decides to implement f:wz's FP system solution. UAL becomes the biggest one amongst f:wz's customers. To generate savings as quick as possible f:wz and UAL designed a "phase in" approach, which allows the usage of the main system functionalities within a very short period; thus UAL is able to reduce it's operational cost within months and until then increased savings step by step.
2005 Malysian Airlines
Malysian Airlines joins the f:wz community as the first customer in South East Asia.
2004 extension of the cost saving features
* A fully integrated flight delay management solution. It automates and integrates currently “manual” processes (e.g. communication to ATC and onboard systems of aircraft) and will automatically consider route restrictions.
* Delay cost handling will be integrated into the planning process.
2002 f:wz launches its "Remote-Access-Services"
Launching customer for the remote access services is Sky Europe, a start up airline based in Bratislava. This service – mainly focusing smaller airlines – is a Terminal Server Solution to flywize, the Flight Planning System. The outputs are Flight Plans including Navigational Data, NOTAM’s, MET, ETOPS, Tankering, Overflight fees, Maps and other graphical functions as well as flight optimization.
2001 Zoppel Software becomes flugwerkzeuge
In April 2001 the company was renamed into flugwerkzeuge (f:wz) Aviation Software Gmbh. with the goal to market flywize internationally as a license and internet based product. Also in April 2001 Austrian Airlines once again decided to expand the use of flywize after a thorough competitor analysis.
2000 Zoppel Software merges with Snowsoft
Partners since 1995, Zoppel and Snowsoft merged into a single company; Snowsoft developed major parts of flywize FB (former OPUS system) as well as ETOPS functionality and "flywize optimizer"; besides that Snowsoft handled SWISS as a customer. Snowsoft's shareholders Peter Radler, Gregor Resch as well as long term team members Martin Sponner, Robby Turner and Eva Schuchanegg joined the new company and moved into the new Döblergasse office in the centre of Vienna.
2000 Central Flight OPS Data Broker
With the entry of Austrian Airlines into the Star Alliance a number of interfaces to reservation systems had to be renewed. Austrian partly adopted Zoppel’s data broker concept to ensure better data integrity and easier adaptation for future interfaces. Zoppel played a leading role in the development of these interface and database structures.
2000 NOTAM and Briefing System (OPUS)
Official NOTAMs and company information are collected in a high performance knowledge base, delivering briefings tailored to the actual planning situation. Available locally or via telex/ACARS remote requests. The system is also in use for cabin crew briefings and technical aircraft status. To fulfill the JAA required for archivation of briefing data all retrieved briefings are stored in native format for later archive queries.
1999 Telex Message Hub
With the arrival of another new technology – Microsoft’s Exchange Server – Zoppel implements a least-cost routing and fail-safe messaging solution for all inbound and outbound telexes.
1998 Worldwide Overflight Fee Calculation
Another ambitious project, leading to precise calculation of overflight fees on any routing in the world – a task that can only be appreciated by those who know the sometimes really strange formulas that governments invent to gather their fees for overflying their countries.
1998 Cost Optimized Flightplanning
This project was initiated by a study carried out by Flight Science International in 1996, which discovered huge potentials for fuel savings in flight operations. As one of the results of this study, Zoppel initially started to work on fuel optimizations, but realized that integrated cost balancing would be far more efficient. Thus the "Cost Index" concept – known from the modern FMS systems was incorporated and extended to simultaneous speed and altitude optimization algorithms.
1997 Global meteorological database
Global surface weather is collected in a local database, speeding up requests and helping to produce tailored weather briefings. The system handles remote telex requests for surface weather reports from outside telex terminals or directly from the aircraft via air/ground link.
1997 Interactive Pilot self service flightplanning
Most of Austrian’s short- and mediumrange flights are prepared now by the flightcrews themselves on ergonomic, easy-to-use flightplanning workstations.
1995 Longrange / ETOPS flightplanning
Zoppel’s system now also manages longrange flightplanning functions, thus replacing Swissair’s Focus system, which had been in use since 1988 for Austrian’s A310 longrange flights. Now all flights including A310 and A340 operations get handled by Zoppel’s system.
1993-95 MFS-2 / Flightplanning for Windows
Always at the frontline of technological development, Zoppel introduces a completely rewritten system with full Windows support (Windows for Workgroups 3.11). With the arrival of high performance relational database servers Zoppel migrates all data to Microsoft’s revolutionary SQL Server. The next migration to an even more promising new platform – we are the first at Austrian Airlines to introduce Windows NT. Gerhard Schindler – another pilot working for us develops a Repetitive Flightplanning solution.
1991 Simple flightplanning system for Amadeus Air
Amadeus Air receives a downsized standalone version of Zoppel’s text based system for its charter services with a Fokker F27
1990 Telex communication interface
Christian Weissgärber develops a new high performance telex interface to Swissair’s communication gateway with inbound and outbound messaging capability.
1990 Foundation of "Zoppel Software"
Raimund Zopp and Hans Doppel, together with Austrian Airlines form a new company to develop advanced aviation specific software solutions as well as general LAN-based PC solutions for small companies.
1988 Dataloader software for TRACOR navigation system
Zoppel develops specific data loader software to be used with TRACOR’s onboard Omega navigation systems. Besides Jeppesen Zoppel becomes the only company certified to produce data loader media for TRACOR’s airborne system. Meanwhile Ops data arrives via a text interface from Austrian’s host system, worldwide Navdata is delivered by Swissair, and upper air winds arrive via an asynchronous link from the Austrian met office.
1984-87 Development of mfs:1 Flightplanning System for Austrian Airlines
Copilots Raimund Zopp and Hans Doppel present their first flightplanning prototype to representatives of Austrian Airlines and Lauda Air. The first system is character-based, written in MS Pascal and runs initially on Burroughs Hard- and Software. After more than 2 years of development, operational tests and thorough involvement of all users in the design process the first system becomes productive in spring 1987. This first system runs on databases maintained entirely by Austrian’s navigation office and Zoppel Software. Ops data and upper air winds have to be entered by hand daily.