Writing Better Aviation AFDs (or) Do you know who your customer really is ?

Writing Better Aviation AFDs (or)Do you know who your customer really is? National Weather Service, Jackson, KY Dustin Harbage And Brian Schoettmer

Why an aviation discussion? • The Aviation Forecast Discussion is designed to impart a forecaster’s reasoning for a given aviation forecast, thereby allowing users insight into a forecaster’s thought process. • This may allow the customer to become more informed and aware of the environment.

…Continued… • If a user can understand how a forecaster arrived at a forecast, and the thought process associated with it, then it could promote a higher level of confidence in the predicted weather conditions.

Who is the customer? • General aviation pilots. • Pilots of small corporations. • Dispatchers for large corporations and commercial airlines. • Meteorologists for major airlines. • Flight Service Specialists • Air Traffic Controllers • Coordinators for special air show events. • Military aircrews. • Etc.

The goal of this presentation is to help WFO forecasters better understand the types of information that an aviation customer needs to know. • Sometimes an aviation customer may not understand the information that is being presented to them. • Our job is to serve the aviation community, including pilots, with the best information possible.

The Problem • Is there too much model discussion and wordage that may not make sense to a pilot with minimal meteorology training? • Do we use non-standard contractions and acronyms too much?

What does a general pilot know about weather? • Pilots are only required to know the basics about meteorology to pass their written tests. -Fronts and associated weather -Surface observations -Maps and associated weather -METAR & TAF interpretation

…Continued… • Obviously, some pilots know more about weather than the basics, but we have to assume that the people using our products only know what they are required to learn in training. • Does a pilot know that CDFNT means cold front, or FROPA means frontal passage? • Is an ordinary person going to understand the terms isentropic lift or vorticity?

Is there a solution? • If the forecast narrative uses complex meteorological terms…how about re-writing in simple terms for the aviation discussion? • Is it really more difficult to write out the word cold front or frontal passage?

…Continued… • Is there an easier way to tell pilots about increasing cloud cover other than using isentropic lift as the culprit? • Be sure to use the FAA’s list of approved abbreviations.

What is a pilot looking for? • The first thing a pilot wants to know is, will the forecast be VFR, MVFR, IFR or less? • Can they legally fly that day; or is the weather beyond their capabilities and/or training? • Is there any threat for thunderstorms? • What is the threat for turbulence, shear or icing? • Is there going to be any sort of frontal activity? • Visibility, ceilings, and winds pertinent to the primary runway.

Don’t Focus on the wrong details • An Aviation Forecast Discussion is designed for the aviation community. • There is no need to include information that is not going to be useful to the people the product is designed for. • Keep it simple and to the point; usually 8 lines or less.

Different AFD’s…Different airports. • An AFD should be worded different for an airport that has different types of air traffic. • For instance, a large international airport with lots of air traffic is more interested in weather that will be best for optimum arrival/departure rates.

…Continued.. • The same holds true when you flip it around. A general aviation pilot is more interested in VFR conditions at traffic pattern altitude. • The bottom line…different airports are used for different purposes with regard to types of aircraft. They are going to require different types of information, respectively.

For example… • A 20 knot crosswind is not going to affect a large airliner very much…however a small single engine airplane may not be able to handle the wind at all. • Basically, there are certain weather conditions that have the ability to shut down a small airport, while the same conditions may only reduce a larger airport’s maximum number of arrivals.

Summary • Understanding the customer of the AFD will help the forecaster create a better product. • Know your customer’s background in weather. - Is your customer a general aviation pilot with only the basic weather training? - Is your customer a large airline with dispatchers who know more about weather?

…Continued… • Also, know the type of airport you are forecasting for. - Is the airport smaller and mainly for general aviation? - Is this a large airport full of commercial traffic? • Different types of forecast discussions will be needed for different types of air traffic.

Finally • Keep it simple and to the point. • Don’t use unnecessarily complex meteorological terms for people who won’t understand them. -This is a waste of time and of a product because the customer won’t benefit if they can’t understand the terminology.

Acknowledgements • Ken Widelski National Weather Service Lubbock, TX Aviation AFD Guidance: An Airline Perspective

The End… Thank you Questions, Comments, Concerns… Feel free to e-mail Dustin.Harbage@noaa.gov Or Brian.Schoettmer@noaa.gov

Writing Better Aviation AFDs (or) Do you know who your customer really is ?