Qatar Airways has begun the roll-out of QLOUD, an internally developed mobility application for iPads, which will provide real time and decision-relevant information to the airline’s pilots.

All 2,500 Qatar Airways pilots are expected to be using the QLOUD system by September this year. Over 500 pilots have already embraced the new technology with 500 more set to begin using QLOUD over the next few weeks.

Qatar Airways has been using mobility technology in its various business functions for over three years, ensuring that its workforce, are able to retrieve decision-relevant information in real time, and in turn improve operational efficiency and enhance customer service.

QLOUD allows pilots to check-in for duty and retrieve important pre-flight information, such as their schedules, flight plans, maps, weather information, details of the crew they are flying with, hotel and destination information and dispatch briefs. This information is accessed at a time and place of their convenience ahead of the flight departure.

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar al-Baker said the airline was continually investing in mobile technology as a means to provide its workforce with real-time information, when required.

“We have already rolled out an internally developed iPad-based mobility application called QRUISE for our cabin crew which has been extremely successful.”

QLOUD also provides Qatar Airways pilots with easy access to operational documentation. Hard copies of flight operational manuals and regulatory documentation, which can easily run into thousands of pages, will become obsolete as soft copies will be made available on the iPads.

Updates to these documents will be completed automatically by distributing relevant operational manuals and updates to all the pilots through QLOUD programming, which includes acknowledgment of receipt from the pilot. In addition, all the paper-based forms, which were being filled out manually by pilots, have been replaced with electronic forms as part of QLOUD.

With Aviation Authorities approving iPads for use in the aircraft deck, Qatar Airways intends to enhance QLOUD to supplement and support on-board Electronic Flight Bag technology.