# Presentation: 573646

## CWAs, Low IFR and more...CWSU Assistance to VFR pilots

- <date/time>

**CWAs, Low IFR and more...****CWSU Assistance to VFR pilots**

- Memphis Center Weather Service Unit
- Doug Boyette

**             **
**          ****CWAs and Low IFR**
**  ****	****           ****CWSU Assistance to**
**            ****	****        ****General Aviation**

## Overview

**Center Weather Advisories within AIRMET Sierra**
**VFR into IFR.. An example of ‘trapped on top’**
**PIREPs and the CWSU**
**New Pilot Weather Briefing tools **

## Obligatory Humor Segment

## Center Weather Advisories in AIRMETS

**Aviation Weather Center Issues AIRMETS**
**Areas are minimum 3000 sq miles, often much more**
**Issue for IFR (below 1000 feet/below 3 miles)**
**LIFR, below 500 feet and/or 1⁄2 <****  **
**In 2002 the CWSUs in the NWS Southern Region began using Center Weather Advisories (CWAs) to cover LIFR areas within existing AIRMETs**
**Based on aerial coverage of LIFR **
**Positive feedback received from AFSS**

## An Example....

**Recreated Event but quite common **
**Graphic Screen is from CWSU unit and is called “Plotter”, a near-real time display of current MTRs across ZME and surrounding airspaces**

##             “PLOTTER” Program 

**            “****PLOTTER” Program**

##              Typical Event 

## Recap

**Aerial coverage of event as it relates to airport minimums is the primary focus**
**Center Weather Advisory (CWA) supplements AIRMETS when reasonably large areas of LIFR exist based on forecaster judgment**
**LIFR impacting isolated airports may not trigger product if AIRMET already in effect as impact is more localized....**
**...****If no AIRMET in effect CWSU will issue a CWA regardless of aerial coverage**** of phenomenon  **

## VFR into IFR 

**Still a major factor in many GA crashes **
**CWSU occasionally provides assistance to VFR pilots ‘trapped on top’**
**An example...**

## April 4, 2008

- Small aircraft flying from Oklahoma to Searcy, Arkansas
- VFR rated
- Came across large shield of Strato-Cu clouds over northern Arkansas
- Kept going towards destination
- Began to get concerned about fuel
- We found hole in the overcast, he got down safe

## Slide 11

## PIREPs

**“****Ground Truth” of the sky **
**CWSU processes ALL PIREPs received from ZME controllers into both in-house/long-line systems**
**CWSU retransmits PIREPs issued by Lockheed-Martin FSS back through in-house Center system if they are Severe in nature**

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

**ADDs   Experimental Briefing Site **
**CWSU Quick Briefing Page **

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

**                           **_[http://weather.aero](http://weather.aero/)__ _

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## What’s New in Pilot Weather Briefings?

## CWSU Quick Brief Pages

**          ****http://www.srh.noaa.gov/zme**

## CWSU Quick Brief Pages

## CWSU Quick Brief Pages

## 	    THE END

**          ****Questions?**