As flight technology has improved, general aviation pilots have changed the way they plan out their flight patterns and flying has become much easier, but that doesn’t mean that pilots can skip any steps in aviation safety.  The automation of the aircraft means shorter pre-flight checklists so pilots can focus more on the trip itself.  While an FBO airport guide usually provides a complete directory of airports, it doesn’t always include tips on flying safely.  However, the recently redesigned TAA website (www.TheAirportAuthority.com) is now offering practical advice for pilots in its monthly blog.

Today’s pilots expect to have immediate access to the most up-to-date FBO airport guide and other information about GA airports, but general aviation pilots still need to stay on top of FAA aviation guidelines.  In a recent article that appeared on the site (“FBO Airport Guide and Directory Teaches Aviation Safety”), the topic of weather-related flight planning is covered.  While most experienced pilots know how to respond to extreme weather or deciding not to fly in certain conditions, newer pilots need to learn the steps recommended by the FAA.

When dealing with pre-flight or in-flight weather changes, the following decision-making framework should be part of every pilot’s lexicon.  Pilots should follow these weather-specific FAA guidelines:

• Perceive weather hazards that could adversely affect your flight by obtaining all the information you need for good situational awareness.
• Process this information to determine whether, and how, the hazards create risk to the safety of your flight.
• Perform by acting to mitigate the risk and evaluate the outcome of your action.

Rather than dealing with too little information about weather, as pilots once did, the very abundance of online weather updates makes it complicated for pilots to make weather-related decisions or screen out non-essential data.   From the perspective of another pilot or an outsider, it is easy to judge another pilot about how he or she should have handled a weather event in the air, but very few GA pilots have the flight experience to make a quick decision during a sudden storm.

As pilots struggle to focus on the facts in front of them and make the right pre-flight choices, they will often turn to weather information services such as Flight Service or DUATS.  But in addition to this crucial pre-flight weather data, pilots are also turning to the FBO airport guide and directory at The Airport Authority (TAA).

< Prev		Next >