Flight Information Display System

A Flight Information Display system (FIDS) is a computer system used in airports to display flight information to passengers, in which a computer system controls mechanical or electronic display boards or TV screens in order to display arrivals and departures flight information in real-time. The displays are located inside or around an airport terminal. A virtual version of a FIDS can also be found on most airport websites and teletext systems. In large airports, there are different sets of FIDS for each terminal or even each major airline. FID systems are used to assist passengers during air travel and people who want to pick-up passengers after the flight.

Each line on an FIDS indicates a different flight number accompanied by:

• the airline name/logo and/or its IATA or ICAO airline designator
• the city of origin or destination, and any intermediate points
• the expected arrival or departure time and/or the updated time (reflecting any delays)
• the gate number
• the check-in counter numbers or the name of the airline handling the check-in
• the status of the flight, such as "Landed", "Delayed", "Boarding", etc.

Due to code sharing, one single flight may be represented by a series of different flight numbers, thus lines (for example, LH474 and AC9099), although one single aircraft operates that route at that given time. Lines may be sorted by time, airline name, or city.

3D FIDS In May 2011, the first 3D FIDS was introduced for airports, as announced by the industry publication, Jane´s Airport Review, June/July issue 2011. Developed by Robin Colclough at Sentel Advance Systems, a UK company, ViewPoint 3D FIDS allowed the creation and display of high-definitin 3D flight information pages. Presenting information using a real-time data-linked 3D graphics allows airports to enhance their FIDS presentations to include a wide-range of 3D effects for status updates, and also present the information in novel and more interesting ways. The system is not aimed at use on 3D screens, although it has that capability, rather the use of full 3D graphics to improve image presentation and flexibility at airports.