How to Obtain a Good Weather Briefing as a Commercial Pilot
Before you become a commercial pilot, it’s important to know how to obtain a good weather briefing. Call (480) 372-9815 today to begin your training toward a pilot’s license.
Flying in appropriate weather helps make your flight enjoyable and keeps your passengers safe. A pre-flight weather briefing is the primary way commercial pilots understand the potential weather challenges of their upcoming flight. As a popular flight school in Arizona for aspiring commercial pilots, Leopard Aviation helps future pilots understand everything they should know about weather briefings.
Types of Weather Briefings
You can obtain three different types of weather briefings, including:
- Standard briefing: A standard briefing offers the most comprehensive data and compares your flight plan with current weather conditions and updated forecasts.
- Outlook briefing: You’ll obtain this briefing as you plan your flight several days before you depart. It includes weather trends.
- Abbreviated briefing: If you request specific information, you’ll receive an answer in the form of an abbreviated briefing. Flight officials also issue them to update previous reports.
Standard Briefing Details
The reports use METARs and TAFs to help the pilot understand the potential challenges of their flight path. Many pilots reference the weather briefings in their PIREPs. You can obtain a standard briefing within six hours of your flight and you must provide the following information:
- Whether you’re flying visually or only with instruments
- Your aircraft identification and type
- Your intended cruising true airspeed and altitude
- The departure airport and time
- Your route and alternative airport options
- Your destination and estimated flight time
- Amount of fuel on board
- Additional Remarks
Tips for Obtaining Good Briefings
Whether you’re flying a plane or a helicopter, you should obtain a pre-flight weather briefing so you can make an informed decision about whether you can fly safely.
Know Your Minimum Conditions
The first step in obtaining your briefing is knowing your capabilities and how comfortable you are flying in adverse weather. You should also factor in the type of aircraft you’re flying and the type of weather it can handle.
- Minimum wind speed
- Amount of precipitation
- Cloud ceiling height
- Visibility
A standard briefing should contain all this information and more. If the data you receive doesn’t meet your minimum conditions, consider postponing your flight.
Look at the Big Picture
Depending on how far you’re flying, you may cross multiple weather patterns, so don’t just look at the conditions of either airport. When you plan your flight plan several days in advance, it allows you to incorporate overall weather trends and forecasts. By looking at these trends, you can often decide on your flight early, giving your passengers a chance to adjust their plans without much inconvenience.
Contact Flight Service Stations
If you’re wondering how to obtain a good weather briefing, contacting a flight service station (FSS) makes it easy. These stations host flight specialists trained to provide the exact information pilots need. The Federal Aviation Administration maintains a list of contact information for Flight Service Stations on their website.
Use Online Services
You can also obtain the information you need from online sources like the Aviation Weather Center, most of which also have interactive tools. On these websites, you can analyze weather patterns and they even give you ways to submit your flight plans all in one accessible place.
Utilizing Pre-Flight Weather for Planning
Understanding the weather is an essential part of planning your flight. To use the information you obtain in the best way, follow these steps.
Several Days Before
You should start planning your flight six or seven days in advance. While you won’t obtain detailed information, you can still look at forecasts and analyze trends to determine the safest route to your destination.
In some cases, you may gather enough information to decide you won’t find favorable conditions. In general, the more notice you can give for a cancelation, the less inconvenience you put on your passengers.
48-24 Hours Before
You can obtain an outlook briefing between 6 and 48 hours before your flight. You’ve likely done your homework already by looking at forecasts and trends, but they become more accurate in this time frame. While most major airlines don’t cancel this early, if you’re flying commercially for a local or regional airport, you’ll have more freedom in canceling due to forecasted weather conditions.
Six Hours Before Take-Off
You can ask for a standard weather briefing within six hours of your flight. In addition to your personal minimums, remember what qualifies as no-fly weather according to your local guidelines. In general, no-go weather includes the following:
- Visibility under three miles
- Cloud ceilings reaching below 1000 feet
- Crosswinds measuring over 20 knots (23 miles per hour)
- Severe turbulence
Contact Leopard Aviation to Obtain Your Commercial Pilot’s License
Now that you know how to obtain a good weather briefing, you’re one step closer to becoming an excellent pilot. At Leopard Aviation, we teach future commercial pilots everything they must know to obtain their license. From reading an airspeed indicator to creating flight plans, you’ll develop all the skills you need.
To learn more about Leopard Aviation and come one step closer to earning your pilot license, call (480) 372-9815.