What this page covers, and how it differs from trip dispatch
Our flight dispatch page describes per-trip dispatch: we plan and follow a flight you send us. Gulf flight dispatch covers the same service for trips in the GCC. This page is about something different: a contract under which LFS acts as part of, or all of, your dispatch or operations control function, over months rather than one trip.
It is written for airlines, charter and cargo operators, aircraft management companies and corporate flight departments that need dispatch capacity they cannot staff every hour, or do not want to.
Why operators outsource dispatch
A dispatch desk staffed for the busiest day of the month is overstaffed on every other day. One staffed for an average day is short the moment two aircraft go technical at once, or a dispatcher is on leave. Smaller operators rarely get this balance right in-house.
Outsourcing moves that staffing problem to a desk that already runs around the clock. You keep control of your operation and your procedures. We provide the people and the continuity.
Three ways to work with us
Ad hoc cover
Cover for a single trip, a weekend, or while one of your own dispatchers is away. This is the simplest start and needs a short onboarding to your procedures and briefing format.
Overflow support
Your desk keeps the day-to-day work, and LFS takes flights on peak days, at night, or when irregular operations stretch your team. Handover rules are agreed in advance, so it is always clear who holds each flight.
Fully outsourced OCC
LFS dispatchers hold the day-to-day dispatch function under your certificate and procedures. Your accountable managers stay in charge. Most customers start with overflow support and expand once the fit is proven.
What is included
- Operational flight plans built to your fuel policy, performance data and alternate rules
- Weather, NOTAM and airspace review for every flight, presented in your briefing format
- ATC flight plan filing and slot or delay message handling
- Flight watch for the whole flight, with re-plan options ready if conditions change
- Coordination of permits, handling and fuel where the contract includes trip support
- Written, timestamped shift handovers so nothing is lost between controllers
- Agreed escalation to your duty manager for decisions that stay with you
Working under your procedures and your authority
Outsourced dispatch only works if it fits your operation, not ours. Before the first flight we agree the scope in a written service agreement: which flights, which hours, which tasks, and where decisions stay with your own staff.
Dispatchers work from your operations manual and your company procedures. Where your authority requires dispatchers of record, specific licences or approval of the arrangement, we work within that framework. What is allowed varies by authority and operator, so it is confirmed for your operation during onboarding. We do not claim any approval on your behalf.
How onboarding works
1. Scope and fit
We review your fleet, routes, current dispatch set-up and the gap you need to fill. You get a clear proposal for ad hoc, overflow or full outsourcing.
2. Procedures and tools
We go through your operations manual, fuel policy, briefing package format and escalation rules, and agree which planning tools and communication channels are used.
3. Shadow and go-live
Where you want it, LFS dispatchers shadow your desk on live flights before taking responsibility. Go-live starts with an agreed set of flights and expands from there.
Records and audit trail
Every flight leaves a record: the briefing package issued, the flight watch log, and timestamped handovers between controllers. Your quality and compliance teams can see what was known, when, and what was decided. This matters for internal audits and for any authority review of your operation.
A typical day under an overflow contract
Your own desk plans the day's flights in the morning. At an agreed time, or when your workload passes a set level, named flights are handed to the LFS desk with a written handover: the current plan, the briefing package, the crew contact and any open issues. From then on, LFS holds those flights. We watch the weather and airspace, answer crew questions, handle delay messages and re-plan if needed.
Decisions that your procedures keep with your company, such as accepting a technical defect, changing the commander or cancelling a flight, are escalated to your duty manager. When the flight is closed, or when your desk takes it back, we hand over in writing again. Your team can see the whole record later.
Irregular operations and disruption
The real test of a dispatch desk is a bad day: weather closing an alternate, an airspace closure, an aircraft going technical away from base, or a crew running short of duty time. On those days the outsourced desk works as extra capacity. We build re-plan options, check the permits and slots affected, and coordinate handling and fuel at a diversion airport, while your own managers make the commercial and safety decisions.
Because the LFS desk also arranges permits, handling and fuel across the region, many disruption tasks that would normally take several phone calls can be handled in the same place as the flight plan.
Tools, data and communication
We work with the flight planning system and data your operation already uses where access is possible, or agree a planning tool during onboarding. Communication channels are agreed in advance: phone, email, messaging and the crew's satellite or ACARS links where available. Every channel used is recorded in the flight's log, so the audit trail stays complete.
Your data stays yours. Flight, crew and passenger information is used only to dispatch your flights and is handled in line with the agreement we sign with you.
Measuring how it is working
At regular reviews we look at the flights dispatched, the handovers made, any issues raised by crews and the actions taken. You decide whether to keep the scope, grow it or reduce it. The aim is a desk that fits your operation, not a contract that grows by default.
Coverage from a Gulf-based desk
The LFS duty desk works from Bahrain, 24/7/365, and dispatches flights worldwide. For operators in the Middle East this means a desk in your time zone, used to the permits, slots and handling arrangements of the region. For a closer look at the real-time flight-watch side of the service, see real-time operations, and for route and fuel planning see flight planning.
Is outsourced dispatch right for you?
It usually fits when your schedule is uneven, when you are growing faster than you can hire, when you are starting a new operation, or when you want night and weekend cover without a full night shift. It is a weaker fit if your flying is steady enough to keep an in-house desk fully busy. We will tell you that honestly during the first conversation.
Frequently asked questions
Can LFS dispatch under our own operations specifications?+
Yes. That is the basis of the service. Dispatchers work to your company procedures and your authority's requirements, not a generic process.
What is the difference between overflow support and a fully outsourced OCC?+
Overflow support covers peak days or gaps in your own desk's coverage. A fully outsourced OCC means LFS dispatchers hold the day-to-day function continuously under your certificate.
Do you replace our dispatchers of record?+
That depends on your authority's rules and how the contract is set up. We work within the licensing and accountability framework your operation needs, confirmed during onboarding.
How are shift handovers recorded?+
In writing, timestamped and in a fixed format, so any controller picking up a flight has the same information as the last one and the record can be audited later.
Can we start with a single trip?+
Yes. Ad hoc cover for one trip or a short period is a common way to start before moving to overflow or full outsourcing.
What happens if your desk and ours disagree on a flight?+
The escalation rules in the service agreement decide. Decisions your procedures keep with your company always go to your duty manager, and the discussion is recorded in the flight log.
How is pricing set?+
It depends on scope, hours and number of flights. We quote after the scoping conversation rather than publishing a standard rate.
Ready to talk about dispatch cover?
Tell us about your fleet, your routes and where your current desk is stretched through our request form. Our team will come back with a proposed scope. Any arrangement remains subject to your authority's requirements.