The Safety Corner....

By Tim Smith

 Why do you suppose all the flight magazines have in-depth articles about weather this time of the year? Are they trying to tell us something?

We are in a weather transition time of the year. Going from winter to summer, the jet stream is moving north and getting weak while it’s not there yet. We could experience weather trends that could last from 20 minutes to two hours. This means that we could go from a winter storm to a summer breeze in a matter of minutes. If we are on the ground we call it spring time. But, we’re in the sky where it all happens. This brings up the point that you can never have enough information about what you’re getting into while flying during this time of the year. Weather knowledge is vital for all pilots, and that’s why the FAA has bent over backwards to train and educate us on the hazards that we as pilots put ourselves into during flight. They even allow flight briefer to assist us on our decision making.

We all have had hours on end to learn about weather during our training, but how much have we forgotten or taken for granted after our training?

Is it still easy for you to read a METAR or TAF report? How about an area forecast? Do you understand the trends that the weather reports are forecasting? If it’s VFR here, what will it be enroute? What about your destination?  Do you know what the weather will be like when you get there?

Understanding weather is like defensive driving. Be on the lookout for anything. Know before you Go!

 The important message is Safety for yourself and your passengers. Metal can be replaced but you cannot. Get that important weather briefing, check for NOTAMS, and file a flight plan.

 I think the person who coined the phrase, ”If you don’t like the weather, just wait”, was a pilot.

 Happy Flying and Be Safe.

1-877-ANYAWOS 

By Sunny Black 

Bill McUmber stood on a rain-swept ramp one day, and wanted to get a quick update of current weather at his destination. He could call the destination AWOS if he had the  phone number, but he didn't. So, when McUmber returned home he and his partner built ANYAWOS. As the name implies, you can now call one toll-free phone number-1-877-ANYAWOS, then enter any airport identifier to get the current AWOS or ATIS after a short ad.

Adapted from IFR Magazine

Columbus Wings Weekend 2004

When: Saturday, May 15, 2004, 8:00 am
Where: OSU Airport

Six topics and six speakers
¨ Recent Changes GPS Approaches
¨ Sky Spotter Program;
¨ Intro to Glider Flying;
¨ How To Survive 2004;
¨ Aviation Law Update for Pilots;
¨ Single Pilot IFR Procedures.

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Did You Know Answers?

Private:  With the center of gravity aft, recovery from a stall could be difficult.

Instrument: Climb to 2500’ then climbing  LEFT turn to 3000’ inbound to MXQ VOR on the 292 radial to D8.3 from MXQ and hold using LEFT-hand turns.   Having MXQ, 112.9, preset on VOR2 would be a good thing.