Navigraph Charts 8 is launching next week!

Navigraph has announced today that the much-awaited new version of its Charts app (v8), is finally launching next week! If all goes well, Navigraph users will soon have access to a series of fantastic new features, some of which we have looked at in previous updates.

Charts 8 has been in development for a while and has actually been in testing for the past few weeks. It promises to bring the flight simulation experience to a whole new level for those who subscribe to the service! Obviously, Charts 8 will come with the existing functionality users know and love, like the updated Jeppesen charts with worldwide coverage. But there’s a lot more coming with this new update, including the introduction of VFR charts, which will now make Navigraph a more enticing service for VFR fliers.

These VFR charts will feature visual reporting points, patterns, transition routes, zones to avoid, and much more. Along with this new chart type will also come new data layers, enabling users to activate terrain views, roads, railroads, landmarks, and obstacles. These will be important to plan your flights under visual flight rules, when terrain awareness is crucial during all stages of flight.

Navigraph will obviously continue to be an extremely useful tool in helping pilots plan their IFR flights from the initial stages of the flight all the way to the gate in the destination airport. To that end, Charts 8 will introduce vector charts, a technology that enables infinite levels of zoom with no quality degradation. This means pilots can have a distant view over a chart for broader situational awareness, or zoom all the way in to the gate and taxiways for an up-close understanding of the aircraft’s precise position.

Another convenient feature that simmers will appreciate will be the automatic pinning of charts. When selecting the desired arrival and departure procedures (Charts 8 will have a robust set of tools to select and visualize SIDs and STARs), charts will be automatically pinned for easier access as needed.

Navigraph is now slating the release of Charts 8 for next week, but a precise launch date is yet to be released. Stay tuned for further news about that and, in the meantime, watch the two feature-previews video in this article to get an idea of what to expect from this exciting Navigraph update!

Here is a shortlist of the upcoming features in the Charts 8 app

  • All basic functionality in the existing Charts apps, including current and worldwide Jeppesen electronic charts.
  • VFR charts with visual reporting points, entry/exit routes, patterns, transition routes, flyways, and avoid-overflying zones, powered by Jeppesen VFR data. 
  • New data layers with terrain, roads, railroads, landmarks, obstacles, high points, populated areas and more
  • Data-driven charts with 3D globe projection, with configurable items and seamless zoom down to airport/taxiway/gate level, and support for track-up moving maps
  • Improved airspace visualization with clearer altitude restrictions
  • Pinboards with auto-pinning of procedure charts
  • Drag-and-drop route construction (Might not be present on initial release for Android and iOS devices) 
  • Airport weather (METAR/TAF) and runway winds