Livery Review QRH
Introduction
This page was created to provide members and staff an easy to reference/easy to share resource to address common questions and concerns about livery reviews. All information in this document can be found in the Flight Operations Manual.
How this document is used: You may be linked this page in a staff comment on a PIREP along with a section number. Matching the section number you were given to the numbered sections below will give you a quick summary of why your PIREP was held for review, rejected, or invalidated due to the livery and what, if any, next steps you can expect.
Section 1
Booked Aircraft Type Must Match Flown Aircraft Type
This will be mentioned several times below, but this is the most common livery related error that we see when reviewing vAAL PIREPS.
You must book the same type of aircraft that you fly on a PIREP. When you book your flight, if you select an aircraft type different from the one you intend to fly, you must cancel that booking and re-book the flight with the correct aircraft type.
Your PIREP will be invalidated if the booked aircraft type does not match the flown aircraft type.
Please note that the A321 CEO (A321) and the A321 NEO (A21N) are two different aircraft types and two different fleets when it comes to booking a flight. If you are going to fly the A321 NEO (A21N), you need to book an A321 NEO (A21N). If you book an A321 CEO (A321) this is a mismatch and the PIREP will be invalidated.
The most common A21N flown is the ToLiss A321 NEO expansion for their A321 CEO. To minimize the chances of avoidable PIREP invalidations, please make sure that the folder name for your ToLiss A21N liveries does not include a CEO engine type (CFM, IAE) or a CEO registration, as this may cause the system to reject your livery and may cause your PIREP to be invalidated.
This also extends to things like the Boeing 737-800 and the Boeing 737 MAX 8. The B738 and B38M are not interchangeable. Same goes for the 777 and the 767, etc.
There is a small amount of flexibility given for two aircraft types: the MD-80 and the BAE 146. We ask, but do not require, that you book the correct sub-type for these aircraft, but an MD-82 flown with an MD-83 registration, or a BAE 146-100 flown when the BAE 146-200 was booked, etc., will not cause a PIREP to be invalidated so long as the livery used is otherwise appropriate.
Section 2
PIREP Status: Livery flagged for review. No reply needed unless contacted. See FOM for more information.
If you see this status on a PIREP, you do not need to be concerned, and you do not need to leave a comment unless a staff member leaves a comment on your PIREP asking you for more information. From the FOM:
Every time a PIREP is submitted, Pegasus and vAMSYS logs the livery used on the flight and compares the logged livery against a database of previously flown liveries.
When it flags a livery as having been seen for the first time, it is placed into a manual review queue for the admin/staff team to check. This allows us to ensure you have flown the correct aircraft type and used an appropriate livery.
Having the PIREP held for livery review is not necessarily an indication that there is a problem with your livery and/or PIREP. If you used an appropriate livery and your PIREP was marked by the system as Awaiting Review, please feel free to continue flying and the member of staff reviewing the PIREP will approve the livery and it will be added to the approved livery list.
Section 3
PIREP Status: Livery automatically rejected. Contact staff with questions or see FOM.
If you see this status on a PIREP, it indicates that your livery has been reviewed previously on another PIREP and a problem was identified and the staff team has marked that livery to be automatically rejected.
This status will send the PIREP for manual review and staff will review the PIREP and the livery used to verify that there is, in fact, a problem, and staff will either approve, reject, or invalidate the PIREP, and may leave a comment with more information if we think it is necessary.
The majority of the time when this happens the system has correctly identified something is wrong with the livery you used and the PIREP will be rejected or invalidated.
The most common cause for this is a booked aircraft type vs. flown aircraft type mismatch. It is important to remember that, to the vAMSYS system, a livery is the aircraft type flown combined with the livery used, it is a package. You may have downloaded a livery from the Recommended Livery List, but if you booked a different aircraft type to the aircraft type that that livery is for and that you flew, your PIREP is going to be flagged and likely invalidated.
Section 4
“I don’t understand why my PIREP was held for review, I used a livery off the Recommended Livery List!”
It is important to understand that a livery downloaded from the Recommended Livery List may be flagged for review again in the future.
An update to the addon that was used, a change to the livery’s folder name, changes to the aircraft’s name in its configuration files – things of this nature may prompt a re-review. It is not necessary for you to tell us that the livery came off of the Recommended Livery list as it will not speed up your PIREP’s review, nor will it prevent additional reviews in the future.
Having a PIREP held for livery review is not necessarily an indication that there is a problem with your livery and/or PIREP. If you used an appropriate livery and booked the same type of aircraft taht you flew but your PIREP was sent by the system for manual review, please feel free to continue flying and a member of staff will review the livery and PIREP as soon as practible and, if everything is correct, the livery will be accepted and added to the approved livery list.
Section 5
“I don’t understand why my PIREP was held for review, I used this livery last week and it was fine!”
It is important to understand that a previously approved livery may be flagged for review again in the future. It is not necessary for you to tell us that you’ve used a livery before as it will not speed up your PIREP’s review, nor will it prevent additional reviews in the future.
The most common reason for a livery you have used before to be flagged by the system is a mismatch between the booked aircraft type and the flown aircraft type. It is important to remember that, to the vAMSYS system, a livery is the aircraft type flown combined with the livery used, it is a package. You may have downloaded a livery from the Recommended Livery List, but if you booked a different aircraft type to the aircraft type that that livery is for and that you flew, your PIREP is going to be flagged and likely invalidated.
Other reasons for this happening can be: an update to the addon that was used, a change to the livery’s folder name, changes to the aircraft’s name in its configuration files – things of this nature may prompt a re-review.
Having a PIREP held for livery review is not necessarily an indication that there is a problem with your livery and/or PIREP. If you used an appropriate livery and booked the same type of aircraft taht you flew but your PIREP was sent by the system for manual review, please feel free to continue flying and a member of staff will review the livery and PIREP as soon as practible and, if everything is correct, the livery will be accepted and added to the approved livery list.
Section 6
Fake Liveries: Not Allowed
The iconic, pre-2013 bare metal American Airlines livery is not appropriate for aircraft that never wore it. You may find fictional, ”retro” bare metal liveries for aircraft like the A320; these are not approved and your PIREP may be invalidated. No narrow-body Airbus ever wore the AAL bare metal livery.
Please also note that the AAL Airbus fleet does not wear any heritage liveries on A320s. As such, heritage liveries should not be used on the A320 as they would be fictional, and fictional liveries are prohibited by the FOM, with PIREPs subject to rejection or invalidation.
Instead, heritage liveries are only approved for use with the A319 and A321. The Piedmont, Allegheny, PSA, and America West heritage liveries were originally A319s but have since been moved to A321s; the US Airways heritage livery is on the A321.
Section 7
Regional and Heritage Operators: Some Flexibility Allowed, Some Restrictions Apply
We ask, but do not require, pilots to use a livery that matches the booked American Eagle partner. These partners are: Envoy Air, Piedmont Airlines, PSA Airlines, Air Wisconsin, Republic Airways, and SkyWest Airlines.
For example, if you book a PSA CRJ700 flight, we ask that you use an American Eagle/PSA CRJ700 livery, but an American Eagle/SkyWest CRJ700 would be acceptable instead. To put it even more plainly, our global requirement that the booked aircraft type and flown aircraft type always applies, and for American Eagle flights the only other requirement is that an American Eagle livery is used, from any American Eagle partner.
Please note that these regional operators may also operate flights for other airlines. You must use an American Eagle livery for those operators. In other words, a Delta SkyWest livery is not appropriate for a SKW flight at vAAL.
Heritage airline flights must be operated with a livery that matches the operator. In other words, a Reno Air MD-80 flight must use a Reno Air MD-80 livery; using an American MD-80 livery on a Reno Air flight will result in PIREP invalidation.
We ask, but do not require, that the livery used also matches the timetable year. For example, TWA 1988 flights should use the TWA double stripe livery, not the older Globe livery.