Flight Crew Last 90 Days 250; Flight Crew Total 11907; Flight Crew Type 8661
Situational Awareness; Communication Breakdown; Workload
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Became Reoriented; Flight Crew Took Evasive Action
Procedure; Company Policy; Environment - Non Weather Related
In Flight Planning noticed a more northerly (almost Polar) random route than normal. Upon crew change enroute as International Relief Officer (IRO); We began planning for radio comms; procedures and analyzing for upcoming route requirements from Russia to Destination [India]. After assessing our route which was more 'easterly' than normal; I realized we were flight planned over high terrain (mid 20's) with NO corresponding Terrain Critical Depressurization Procedures (TCDP) Procedure/Escape Procedure for that routing in the Operating Manual. I expected to be on our normal TCDP routing and pages for Terrain Crit.Notified Dispatch about an hour and a half prior to reaching that point as to my concern and that we did NOT and were not going to fly over high terrain on that particular routing Without TCDP Procedures in the event of an Emergency and requested Reroute over appropriate airways. Dispatch said he would check for TCDP Procedure on that filing and could find NO Escape/TCDP Procedure for what they had filed. We recommended reroute to Dispatch and worked on reroute with Dispatch and ATC over M875 with appropriate TCDP. In conclusion; I was surprised and concerned that [software] would plan a route over high terrain with NO TCDP/Escape Procedure. After we discovered this and called it to Dispatch's attention. Dispatch [re-filed] for both Flight who was on the same routing ahead of us.There should be Software or checks to preclude this type of filing by [computer software]/Dispatch on routing without appropriate TCDP Procedures.
A B777 crew enroute to Western Asia over an easterly routing; realized the high terrain beneath their route offered no emergency high terrain escape procedures. The dispatch software apparently contained no check for flight contingencies over high altitude terrain.