No more paper: Bertelsmann’s fleet features digital-only cockpits thanks to Collins Aerospace

As a company aspiring to be climate neutral by 2030, Bertelsmann – a media, services and education company based in Gütersloh, Germany, and operating in about 50 countries around the world – is taking a step in the right direction after going paperless in the cockpits of its corporate aircraft and becoming the first certified business jet operator in Germany to achieve fully paperless flight operations.

Bertelsmann has been working with Collins Aerospace for more than a decade to implement various flight support services targeted to the business jet market. Working closely with the sales and marketing team at Collins, Marcus Brunninger, corporate pilot and managing director of Flight Operations for Bertelsmann, has regularly learned of new cost-effective and efficient solutions for his company’s fleet of two Dassault Falcon 2000LXS aircraft.

“Working with Collins over the years has been mutually beneficial as they’ve helped us discover the best digital solutions to our problems,” Brunninger said. “We’ve come to trust the ongoing guidance and support from their knowledgeable business aviation professionals.”

Most recently, after implementing ARINCDirectSM's iPad®-accessible flight planning tools and Flight Operations System (FOS®) available from Collins, all of Bertelsmann’s flight data and reports are now accessible and securely stored in one easy-to-access online location rather than requiring printed copies in the cockpit.

Customers in the commercial and business aviation space have been calling for a digital transformation to improve efficiency and safety. Paper documents produce excess waste and quickly become outdated. By contrast, implementing digital solutions can reduce that waste, enhance sustainability efforts, and offer real-time data for flight planning.

“We designed these applications to help operators like Bertelsmann’s Flight Ops Group make flight planning easier and more efficient, cut costs, and reduce their environmental footprint,” said Mike Shearer, head of Business Aviation Sales for Collins Aerospace. “As Collins continues to drive digitization in the aviation industry, we congratulate companies like Bertelsmann who are taking clear actions towards a safer and more sustainable future.” 

ARINCDirect's iPad-accessible flight planning tools are designed for in-flight use by crew with or without internet connectivity. They enable quick access to everything from flight plans, weight and balance calculations, weather data and the recently added oceanic plotting feature. FOS streamlines flight operations by gathering all a pilot or crew’s necessary information in one place without any repeated data entry — saving time and money. Collins regularly adds capability to existing products and brings new digital products to market in support of aviation’s sustainability objectives.