User consultation workshop on Meteorological Service for Low-Level Flights and PT/LLF/2 meeting Summary of Discussions 23 and 24 March 2010, Schönhagen Airport, Berlin, Germany 25 March 2010, Deutscher Wetterdienst, Tempelhof Airport, Berlin, Germany Greg Brock, Regional Officer (MET), ICAO EUR/NAT Office, Paris Background In response to EANPG Conclusion 50/37, ICAO organized a user consultation workshop on meteorological (MET) services for low-level flights (LLF). The workshop was designed to bring together the general aviation (GA) user community and the MET provider community within the EUR Region in order to determine how best MET services for low-level flights could be harmonized. Demand for MET information relating to LLF has grown in recent years; however, such services have often developed independently from one State to the next. Since the provision of such services are typically in accordance with regional air navigation, and often determined by the State MET Authority in consultation with users, MET provision for LLF in Europe has become a mixture of ICAO standard and non-standard products and services. Immediately following the two-day user consultation workshop, the project team for the regional harmonization of MET services for low-level flights (PT/LLF) convened a half-day review meeting to discuss the common themes to emerge from the workshop and determine future work activities ahead of METG/20. User consultation workshop on MET service for low-level flights The two-day user consultation workshop was attended by 45 participants, representing 20 States, 4 international organizations and 4 industry/user representative groups. The workshop was presided over for its duration by the ICAO Secretary, with assistance from the PT/LLF Rapporteur and Deutscher Wetterdienst (Germany). A full contact list is at Appendix A. The workshop considered global and regional regulatory provisions concerning to MET for LLF, general aviation user needs and expectations, current MET service provision, and future trends in weather information exchange and visualisation. Due to the variety of user groups that fall under the auspices of ‘general aviation’ – from balloonists and hang-gliders to fixed-wind light aircraft and business jets – the workshop identified that it would not be possible to find one MET product or solution to fit all. Each user group has unique operating capabilities and thus requirements, which had resulted in the proliferation of MET products and services in recent years. The workshop was presented with a range of MET products and services that are available today serving the GA community – from basic text warnings and forecasts (such as AIRMET and GAMET), through more sophisticated and tailored graphical low-level forecasts (such as low-level SIGWX, GAFORs, spot-wind charts, alpine forecasts, ballooning forecasts) to advanced interactive web-based applications. The workshop recognised that there was a need to consider the trend away from traditional MET ‘products’ towards MET ‘data’, where standardised and regulated data sets of MET information can be used to derive user orientated forecasts. An increasing number of GA activities are taking place internationally, crossing borders from one State to the next. Being able to easily obtain up-to-date, relevant, accurate and consistent MET information for such activities had become an increasingly lengthy and challenging process for the users. Notable findings and recommendations to emerge from the workshop included: Need for improved exchange and accessibility of LLF forecasts across the region, perhaps through improved utilisation of the public internet; Need to consider the future data centric environment (weather information exchange) that will allow users to generate products tailored to their [unique] operating thresholds/limits through application of MET ‘features’ rather than traditional ‘graphics’ or ‘text’; Need for increased forecast consistency and harmonized layout – both product-to-product and State-to-State; Need for improved basic skills in English language for MET personnel performing flight briefings, plus need for improved education amongst users to ensure correct interpretation of MET information; Recommendation for consistent application of above mean sea level (AMSL) up to a particular transition altitude, rather than above ground level (AGL) or flight levels (FL) within low-level area forecasts; Recommendation that low-level significant weather forecast charts (SWL) should cover a ‘period of validity’ rather than a ‘fixed time validity’; Potential application of qualifying terms relating to the cause and/or extent of mountain obscuration; Noting that [ICAO] provisions concerning MET for low-level flights are typically subject to regional air navigation agreement, the EUR Air Navigation Plan will be the most suitable mechanism to progress such recommendations and harmonization activities. Any recommendations will be considered through METG in the first instance, with appropriate consultation with regional safety groups and others, as appropriate. In addition to the above, there was a call for clarification on what threshold is used to determine whether the density of air traffic operating below FL100 warrants the issuance of AIRMET; and a recommendation that the provision of low-level forecasts should be separated from the provision of AIRMET, as currently prescribed in Annex 3. In view of the global nature of these points, coordination with ICAO Headquarters will be essential through the appropriate ICAO procedure. PT/LLF/2 meeting The second meeting of the METG project team for the regional harmonization of MET services for low-level flights (PT/LLF) considered the findings and recommendations to emerge from the user consultation workshop in order to determine a plan of action ahead of METG/20 in September 2010. PT/LLF/2 was attended by seven participants representing six States (Austria, Finland, Germany, Poland, Serbia and Slovenia (Rapporteur)) and one international organization (ICAO). A further two participants from Romania attended the meeting as observers. The PT/LLF Rapporteur presided over the meeting for its duration, assisted by the ICAO Secretary. Overall, the PT/LLF considered that the two-day workshop had been a successful first attempt at engaging the MET provider and GA user communities in matters relating the harmonization of MET products and services within Europe. Initial informal feedback from workshop participants had been positive. The findings and recommendations to emerge from the workshop will be progressed by PT/LLF, in coordination with the ICAO Secretary, to determine how they can be integrated into regional [ICAO] provisions. Further workshop events of this nature may be necessary to address any specific issues that remain, or are likely to arise in future years. The PT/LLF agreed that working papers should be prepared for METG/20 on matters related to (but not limited to) the following: 1) Progress report on PT/LLF activities since METG/19; 2) Proposals for amendment to the EUR ANP (Basic ANP and FASID) based on the findings and recommendations from the user consultation workshop; 3) Invitation to ICAO [at global level] to study whether the issuance of low-level forecasts should be separated from AIRMET within the provisions of Annex 3; and to seek clarification on the threshold used to determine whether the density of air traffic operating below FL100 warrants the issuance of AIRMET; and 4) Invitation to WMO to consider reviewing provisions of oral briefings within WMO No. 258, Supplement No.1, to include requirements for a certain level of skill in the English language for MET personnel performing briefings for international flights. APPENDIX A User consultation workshop on MET service for low-level flights 23 and 24 March 2010, Schönhagen Airport, Berlin, Germany Contact List AUSTRIA Andreas PFOSER + 43 51703 4010 Senior Expert MET Fax: + 43 51703 4006 Austro Control E-mail: Schnirckgasse 11 [email protected] A-1030 Vienna AUSTRIA CROATIA Igor KOS + 385 1 6259 293 Mesometeorology & Postprocessing Fax: + 385 1 6259 223 Specialist E-mail: [email protected] Aeronautical Meteorology Division Croatia Control Ltd CROATIA DENMARK Soren BRODERSEN + 45 391 57 295 Senior Meteorologist E-mail: [email protected] Danish Meteorological Institute / Aviation. DENMARK ESTONIA Tiina JOSEPSON + 372 610 3563 Fax: + 372 610 3501 Senior Inspector of Air Traffic Services and E-mail: [email protected] Aerodromes Department Estonian Civil Aviation Administration Râvala Pst.8 10143 TALLIN ESTONIA FINLAND Klaus HAIKARAINEN + 358 9 1929 3612 Head of Group, Development of Services, E-mail: [email protected] Customer Applications Finnish Met Institute Erik Palmenin aukio 1 00101 Helsinki FINLAND Ossi KORHONEN + 35 89 8277 2274 GSM 358 400 Chief Meteorologist 607461 FINAVIA Fax: + 35 89 8277 2292 P.O Box 50 E-mail: [email protected] FI-01531 VANTAA FINLAND FRANCE Florence BARBINI + 33 1 45 56 70 37 METEO-FRANCE E-mail: [email protected] Departement des missions aéronautiques 1 quai Branly 75340 Paris Cedex 07 FRANCE GERMANY Hans-Dieter SAFFRAN E-mail: [email protected] Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD) Luftfahrberatungs Zentrale München Terminalstrasse Mitte 18 MAC Nord Eb07 85356 München Flughafen GERMANY Udo BUSCH + 49 69 8062 2644 Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD) Fax: + 49 69 8062 2014 Frankfurterstrasse 135 E-mail: [email protected] D-63067 OFFENBACH GERMANY Dirk ENGELBART + 49 228 99 300 49 11