AVIATION WEATHER REPORTS

Aviation Weather Reports

Aviation Weather Reports

Introduction

Aviation has come a long way since the Wright brothers first flew at Kitty Hawk. One thing that has unfortunately not changed as much is the role that weather plays in fatal airplane accidents. Even after a century of flight, weather is still the factor most likely to result in accidents with fatalities. From the safe perspective of the pilot's lounge, it is easy to second-guess an accident pilot's decisions (“Aviation Weather”, http://catsr.ite.gmu.edu/IntroATC/AviationWeather.pdf). Many pilots have had the experience of hearing about a weather-related accident and thinking themselves immune from a similar experience, because “I would never have tried to fly in those conditions.” Given the broad availability of weather information, why do general aviation (GA) pilots continue to find themselves surprised and trapped by adverse weather conditions? Ironically, the very abundance of weather information might be part of the answer: with many weather providers and weather products, it can be very difficult for pilots to screen out non-essential data, focus on key facts, and then correctly evaluate the risk resulting from a given set of circumstances (Alley, 2007).

Preflight Weather Planning

When you plan a trip in a general aviation (GA) airplane, people might find yourself telling friends and family that people are first going to “see” if weather conditions are suitable. In other words, your first major preflight task is to perceive the flight environment by collecting information about current and forecast conditions along the route people intend to take, and then using the information to develop a good mental picture of the situation people can expect to encounter during the flight (Federal Aviation Administration, http://www.faa.gov/pilots/safety/media/ga_weather_decision_making.pdf). Because there are many sources of weather information today, the first challenge is simply knowing where and how to look for the weather information people need.

Television/Internet Sources

For long-range weather planning, many pilots start with televised or online weather, such as The Weather Channel (TWC) on television or the Internet. TWC is not an FAA approved source of weather information, but its television and Internet offerings provide both tactical and strategic summaries and forecasts (up to 10 per day). TWC provides compact, easy-to-use information that can be a useful supplement to approved sources. For example, one TWC Internet page includes a weather map with color-coding for Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) and Marginal Visual Flight Rules (MVFR) conditions at airports around the country. This and other TWC features ...