Pilot Reports (PIREP)
Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2014 9:17 pm
It seems that very few pilots make a PIREP, in flight, in Australia. Why is that?
When a pilot receives Pre-flight Information from NAIPS (Air Services Australia) . . . if not based on ATIS or METAR or SPECI, then the information presented is a collation of best guess and weather modelling.
How many times has a SIGMET for Severe Turbulence or Severe Icing been issued, and it has been Light or possibly Moderate, at most? How many times was CAVOK or visibility greater than 10km issued and it turned out to be foggy or 500m Visibility and it turned out to be CAVOK and 10km?
Such reports of Severe anything or poor visibility would certainly affect the Go-No-Go decision or Alternate Requirement or route selection or amount of reserve fuel versus payload.
I had called Bureau of Meteorology, from Melbourne-Tullamarie, to suggest to the person taking my call that the weather briefing information was overly conservative. He told me that B.O.M. seldom receives any feedback from pilots validating weather . . . even with very sophisticated weather modeling programs, B.O.M. produces their best guess, lacking "real-time" feedback.
In another post, by Ozloadie, he espouses, ". . . the amount of inflight intelligence and information gathered is even more reliant on you the captain and/or crew. It goes hand in hand with inflight wx broadcasts and advisories from pilots enroute confirming or challenging critical wx elements. No such thing as useless information."
I agree with him.
Aside from the regulatory requirement to report hazardous weather, we owe it to each other to provide a PIREP and feedback to Bureau of Meteorology, to facilitate more acurate weather forecasting.
Putting a brave face on or simply being lazy or indifferent goes against Civil Aviation Regulation 1988, Division 3, Part 247, Page 130.
"247 Meteorological conditions observed en route
(1) The pilot in command shall report, in the approved form and at
such times as requested by a meteorological observer, the
meteorological conditions observed en route.
Penalty: 5 penalty units.
(2) When any meteorological condition, hazardous to flight, is
encountered en route, the pilot in command shall report the
condition as soon as possible, giving such details as appear
pertinent to the safety of other aircraft.
Penalty: 5 penalty units.
(3) An offence against subregulation (1) or (2) is an offence of strict
liability.
Note: For strict liability, see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code."
Please make PIREPs. The life you save may be a mate.
When a pilot receives Pre-flight Information from NAIPS (Air Services Australia) . . . if not based on ATIS or METAR or SPECI, then the information presented is a collation of best guess and weather modelling.
How many times has a SIGMET for Severe Turbulence or Severe Icing been issued, and it has been Light or possibly Moderate, at most? How many times was CAVOK or visibility greater than 10km issued and it turned out to be foggy or 500m Visibility and it turned out to be CAVOK and 10km?
Such reports of Severe anything or poor visibility would certainly affect the Go-No-Go decision or Alternate Requirement or route selection or amount of reserve fuel versus payload.
I had called Bureau of Meteorology, from Melbourne-Tullamarie, to suggest to the person taking my call that the weather briefing information was overly conservative. He told me that B.O.M. seldom receives any feedback from pilots validating weather . . . even with very sophisticated weather modeling programs, B.O.M. produces their best guess, lacking "real-time" feedback.
In another post, by Ozloadie, he espouses, ". . . the amount of inflight intelligence and information gathered is even more reliant on you the captain and/or crew. It goes hand in hand with inflight wx broadcasts and advisories from pilots enroute confirming or challenging critical wx elements. No such thing as useless information."
I agree with him.
Aside from the regulatory requirement to report hazardous weather, we owe it to each other to provide a PIREP and feedback to Bureau of Meteorology, to facilitate more acurate weather forecasting.
Putting a brave face on or simply being lazy or indifferent goes against Civil Aviation Regulation 1988, Division 3, Part 247, Page 130.
"247 Meteorological conditions observed en route
(1) The pilot in command shall report, in the approved form and at
such times as requested by a meteorological observer, the
meteorological conditions observed en route.
Penalty: 5 penalty units.
(2) When any meteorological condition, hazardous to flight, is
encountered en route, the pilot in command shall report the
condition as soon as possible, giving such details as appear
pertinent to the safety of other aircraft.
Penalty: 5 penalty units.
(3) An offence against subregulation (1) or (2) is an offence of strict
liability.
Note: For strict liability, see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code."
Please make PIREPs. The life you save may be a mate.