Dec. 1, 2022
NBAA encourages members to join an FAA webinar on Dec. 6, which focuses on the agency’s plans to expand its existing weather camera network into more locations within the continental U.S.
To date, the agency has installed 290 weather cam systems in Alaska, Hawaii and Colorado that act as supplemental preflight and inflight information sources to monitor meteorological conditions at airports and selected enroute locations.
The weather camera program began in Alaska in 1999 when the agency determined pilots flying VFR could benefit from actual views of current weather conditions. The state of Colorado alone, in the spring of 2020, installed weather cameras at 53 mountain passes and airport locations.
“The industry has been asking for an expansion of the (weather camera) program because of the incredible safety (in reducing weather related accidents) and other operational benefits they provide, especially in remote areas where we don’t have weather sensors,” said NBAA Senior Director Air Traffic Services and Infrastructure Heidi Williams.
Weather cams offer users a high-definition view of the site on a clear day as a reference placed next to another video window that shows the current conditions looking in any of the four cardinal directions. Each camera also gives users an opportunity to replay the weather conditions at the site over the previous hour, with updates every 10 minutes.
Because weather cam data is available on the web, business aircraft equipped with Wi-Fi should be able to view the information in near real time while still airborne through the agency’s Weather Cams site.
The FAA webinar begins at 1 p.m. (EST), and can be viewed on the agency’s YouTube channel. The presentation will include an opportunity for attendees to ask questions.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.