MAVIS FAQs

What is MAVIS^®​​​​​​​?

How do I get access to MAVIS^®?

Can I use my existing account?

Is MAVIS^® operational and safe to use?

What is happening to my existing services?

What is happening with Aviation Briefing Service (ABS) Premium?

Can I pay to access the other features in MAVIS^®?

Why can't I find the fog map layer?

Why can I not see all the data, products, or locations I am used to?

Why can I see map layers that I am not used to seeing?

Is there a guidance document I can refer to?

What do I do if I need additional help/support?

Where can I report a problem?

Where can I provide feedback?

Is MAVIS named after Mavis Hinds?

Do you have a document that I can share with my team or in our intranet?

 

What is MAVIS^®?

The Met Office Aeronautical Visualisation Services (MAVIS) is a new product designed to combine and replace the following existing services:

• Aviation Briefing Service (ABS)
• Network Weather Resilience (NWR)
• Helibrief^®
• OpenRunway^TM

MAVIS will provide a single platform and access for all aviation visualisation data to support all users of the existing services.  It provides a new and improved user interface.

How do I get access to MAVIS^®?

This service is in beta testing. To access MAVIS, please visit mavis.metoffice.gov.uk and complete the sign-up process. Please note, during the beta phases of this service, MAVIS will not be feature complete but is now operational.

Can I use my existing account?

If you have a Met Office account that has been used to access other services, these credentials can be used to access MAVIS. If you only have an account for one of the services MAVIS is replacing, you will need to create a new Met Office account at the login page for MAVIS.

Is MAVIS operational and safe to use?

Yes. MAVIS is now operational and safe to use, however it is not feature complete. New features will be added regularly.

What is happening to my existing services?

The Met Office will retire the legacy infrastructure that hosts the existing services on the 24th March 2026. This phased process will allow existing users to migrate seamlessly to the new platform. 

What is happening with Aviation Briefing Service (ABS) premium?

There is not currrently a premium service offered in MAVIS to replicate Aviation Briefing Service (ABS) Premium. This will be developed in 2026, but no fixed timeframe is available at this stage. If you have questions about your existing subscription or concerns about what you can access, please contact [email protected] 

Can I pay to access the other features in MAVIS?

MAVIS is combining multiple services and, as a result, you may have the opportunity to access data in the service that you have previously been unable to. If you are an organisation who has previously accessed OpenRunway^TM, or a new organisation wishing to enquire about the various products available in MAVIS, you can contact your account manager or email [email protected] 

Why can't I find the fog map layer?

We have had a significant amount of feedback regarding Fog Map Layers. Fog has traditionally been on a combined map layer with cloud base. Having had feedback about this map layer we will bring forward implementation of a map layer to highlight where fog is forecast. The visibility Map Layer is a useful map layer to review to understand where in the UK there is reduced visibility, due to fog or low cloud.

In addition, we have been asked for a Map Layer where cloud base below 1000ft is shown in incraments, a feature that has not been available before. We will refresh the Cloud Base Map Layer after the next Supercomputer release.

Why can I not see all the data, products or locations I am used to?

The MAVIS service is still in development during the Beta phases. This means that all data, map layers, locations, or functionality will not be available at this time. MAVIS will have all the data and functionality of the existing services at a later stage.

Why can I see map layers that I am not used to seeing?

Whilst the service is still in development, there is a chance that there will be more data or map layers visible to you than you are used to seeing in your existing service. This is likely due to access management still being developed and does not mean you will continue to be able to access or visualise this data when the service goes live. The Met Office reserves the right to limit or alter the access to any data hosted within MAVIS at any stage during the development process or after the service goes live.

Is there a guidance document I can refer to?

Yes, there is a user guide to assist with the onboarding of users. If you wish to access this, please contact [email protected]

What do I do if I need additional help/support?

Please contact [email protected] for additional support.

Where can I report a problem?

To report a problem with the MAVIS service, please primarily use the inbuilt functionality in the main menu of the application. If you have issues with this functionality, access, or any other issue preventing you from using this mechanism, please contact [email protected] 

Where can I provide feedback?

There is an inbuilt feedback mechanism in the main menu in the MAVIS application. Please primarily use this to provide feedback, however if you are having issues with this functionality, or feel it more appropriate to provide your feedback directly, please contact [email protected] 

Is MAVIS named after Mavis Hinds?
While MAVIS stands for Met Office Aeronautical Visualisation Service, we're proud that the name also echoes Mavis Hinds, a pioneering programmer who worked at the Met Office in the early 1950s. Mavis helped revolutionise weather forecasting by pioneering the use of computers in numerical weather prediction, turning calculations that took hours into processes that ran in minutes. Like our platform today, her work transformed complex data into valuable insights. You can read Mavis's own account of her groundbreaking work in Met Mag in our own archives (pages 61-89) and learn more in this article about her contribution to UK IT.

Do you have a document that I can share with my team or in our intranet?

Yes, you can download a PDF with concise information about MAVIS to share with your team and on your intranet here.