Winter Flying: Dealing with Winter Conditions

AOPA Air Safety Institute

AOPA Air Safety Institute Cold Weather Resources http://www.aopa.org/asf/hotspot/winterwx.html

AOPA Air Safety Institute Weather Wise Precipitation and Icing http://flash.aopa.org/asf/wxwise_precip/

COPA Safety Forum M9 Presentationhttp://www.cirruspilots.org

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Member Presentations

Eric Broderson – ATP Received Private Pilot certificate – 1967 CFII – 1978 (time out to finish college) ATP while flying freight for Combs Freightair – 1980 Trained as captain on the Convair 580 turboprop – 1984 Eastern Airlines – 1985 to 1989 – B727 Northwest Airlines until 2010 – DC9 & A320 Fly's his ‘Floatfox’ off Big Carnelian Lake

Member Presentations

Mark Shanahan – ATP Logged fist hour in 1971 Earned commercial, multi, instrument and CFI – 1976 After college landed job flying freight in DC-3s Took a pay cut and joined Atlantic Southeast Airlines flying

DeHavilland Twin Otter Joined Republic Airlines – 7 years in CV-580 From Republic to Northwest and now Delta Enjoys all type of flying including; ultra-lights, seaplanes, and

other various general aviation airplanes

What can us ‘little guys’ learn from

large aircraft operations?

De-icing, snow removal, aircraft preflight are all specified in an operations manual.

Flight operations have published limitations and procedures.

The rules are set and then FOLLOWED!

A jet may have a ‘hot’ wing and lots of other de-icing gear, but that doesn’t allow it operate continuously in icing conditions. The rule is ‘get out when icing starts.’ (Think American Eagle ATR in Indiana)

Plowing is critical! Are snow banks inside or outside of

runway lights? Are there drifts across the runway?

Air carrier airports require reports and inspections. What about your airport?

Will light conditions affect what you see? Can you get to/from the runway?

De-icing is one thing, pre-heating is another.

We pre-heat our engines, but what about the rest of the airplane? Gyro instruments in particular need to warm up.

Make them! Listen for them! But… Consider the source! What is light icing

to an A320 could be fatal to a Cherokee Six.

Aircraft capability makes it hard to tell real extent of icing (At 2-3,000 fpm climb, they aren’t in the weather long).

The regional fleet has changed radically in 10 years. Very few turboprops operating to smaller cities. This limits useful PIREPs.

For large airplane pilots, it’s a job. It’s got to be done right. If we don’t get home, so what. Wife may

be upset, but boss won’t mind. First responsibility is to make sure

passengers are safe.

AVOIDING ICING 21D TO KMSN

This presentation is designed to stimulate a discussion for Tailwinds Flying Club members about avoiding icing conditions in our airplanes.

The author isn’t currently a CFI or claims to be an authority on icing…

But I’ve got some experience in the subject and would like to share some of that, and the weather information here is typically what I look at when considering flying a trip that risks an encounter with icing.

There are many ways to look at this subject and sources of information, please share your technique with us.

If you have some ideas, experiences, or questions:

Please participate!

Can’t start without a….

Disclaimer

This presentation is for discussion only and does not claim to show how to do a legal or complete briefing prior to a flight!!

Please consult your FARs and the AIM for that information!!

And:

Don’t fly our airplanes in Icing Conditions!!

I first learned about icing in the Aero Commander, a very capable freighter. Not certified for ‘known ice’ but it will fly night after night all winter!

That’s FL190, by the way…. Turbocharged 400hp Lycomings.

Flight Plan

N132CP Cirrus SR20/G 140kt21D PRESS V2 ODI V82 DLL KMSNETE 1:20 FOB 3:20Alternate KDLL (GPS 01/19, LOC/DME 01)

Plan on leaving mid afternoon

But we’ll take the Cirrus this time. I sure like the avionics better!

Only a little radar return near destination

At 15z (10am)

15 hours later

General Info!!

Yep, some IFR around, but a good trend

Let’s leave after 3pm

Metars and FA’s. GOT TO HAVE ‘EM!

Hard IFR down there…

But looks like 23z (6pm) should be good for weather and wind at MSN.. So if we arrive then…

Nice Tailwind!

Can’t descend to above 0 deg C!

12pm at 5000

12pm at 9000Is that lake effect ice over Michigan?

5pm. MSN should be good by 6?

All icing Pireps are east of our route, and the weather is moving east.

GOOD!

Let’s fly!!

I’m over LaCrosse. About half way. I’m in the clear.

I call flight watch and ask for icing pilot reports.

A Twin Comanche gave a PIREP over DLL at 7000 reporting light rime ice and a temp of -8.

Another PIREP was a DC9 climbing out of Madison reporting bases at 2500 and tops at 5500, and another layer above, with a trace of ice in cloud.

PIREPS and PROS

Forecasts are important, but PIREPS are the REAL DEAL! It’s what’s happening in real time. Pros get recent Pireps any time they are concerned about icing.

When you’re in good weather, get the PIREPS from Flight Service (or on a device)

But when you think icing is in your area ask ‘CENTER’.

If ‘CENTER’ (enroute ATC) isn’t real busy, you can ask them directly for pilot reports on icing. They are the best source!

They’re handling aircraft in your area and at your altitude. That means they know your conditions and are talking to aircraft like yours. And they are there to help you!

Towers will often ask departing airliners to make a PIREP back to them on altitudes of the bases and tops of the cloud layers and and icing while they climb out of the area. Among other things, this makes that information available for small aircraft to help them stay VFR and/or out of icing.

The report made by the DC9 is pretty common at smaller ‘Tower’ airports and pretty reliable.

Remember airliners just turn on their anti-ice systems and often plow through ice without even thinking about it.

So if an airliner makes a report that is unsolicited, that ice is probably deadly for our little Cirrus.

Other Notes on PIREPS

Pay attention to other airplanes on Center’s frequency. Especially if they’re in front of you!

Reports from piston aircraft with icing equipment (usually twins with boots and heated props) are excellent.

They spend time in the ice and know the conditions behind them, and often know about cloud layers, etc. You should know aircraft types so you know who’s talking.

One note of caution – We can’t always determine the other airplanes capability by its call sign. That Cirrus could be like 132CP (not approved for flight into know icing) or it could be an SR22 with a wet wing system. Just because they can fly through the area, it doesn’t mean we can.

What we don’t have on our planes:

Wing and tail boots, wet wings, prop heat, windshield heat, and retracted gear that’s not collecting ice.

But we DO have….

1.Pitot Heat and a window defroster. Make sure they’re on!!2.Alternate Eng Intake Air and Alternate Pitot Source. Know how to use them!!

Consider Effects of Ice:

More Effects:

• Iced up windshield (or fogged up on the inside). How do you handle that?

• Radio reception degraded.• Airspeed indication drops to ‘zero’, what now?

Tail Ice Can Cause a Tail Stall

Flap extension in combination with horizontal stab ice… result is a rapid pitch down! Recovery? Raise flaps!

Props

The importance of preserving thrust in ice is often forgotten.

1.The heaviest ice is often near the top of a cloud layer

2.The heaviest ice is often in air closest to 0 deg C

3.Away from fronts or mountains, ice will usually be in layers, is pretty predictable, and lighter

4.But if ice is in uplifted air such as ahead of a cold front, in a large cumulous cloud, or when it rises over a mountain range, and can be devastating even to an airliner.

5.Icing can be very localized. Not easy to spot like a thunderstorm or low visibility. Move 20 miles and its gone

1.You don’t have to be in the clouds to get airframe icing. Precip may be cold enough to freeze on your airframe.

I’m over the DLL VOR at 5000 in clouds

It’s about 5pm, dark, about 20 minutes from Madison and have 2:00 of fuel.

Using my flashlight I notice an opaque film on the wing leading edges, and IAS is reducing a few knots

What now?

FLY THE AIRCRAFTIDENTIFY THE PROBLEMUNDERSTAND THE OPTIONSEXECUTE A PLAN

FLY THE AIRCRAFT

1.Instrumentation: PITOT HEAT ON2.AND Locate the Alternate Static Source knob in case I need to use it3.Engine: Locate the Alternate Air Intake knob in case I need that4.Windshield: Turn up the defroster.

The Problem and The Options

I advise ATC that I have entered icing and I want to get out of it soon!

1.I ask ATC (if I haven’t already): Are there other aircraft close and what are their conditions2.I know I can’t descend below the freezing level3.Can I go between cloud layers? Where are the tops and bases of the clouds?4.I know the weather behind me pretty well; turn around now?

ATC says an aircraft 10 miles north is between layers at 6000.

She also gives me the weather at MSN and LNR.DLL is not reporting; darn!

KMSN 33014 2 ½ SM –SN FEW 08 OVC 022 M06/M10 A2988KLNR 34012 6 SM OVC 042 M07/M10 A2991

Execute a plan: What to do?

BE PREPARED Check weather

Plan days ahead of flight Get weather briefing before flight Conditions at both departure and arrival airports

Check aircraft performance charts Check aircraft POH for takeoff and landing distances –

add 15% safety margin Fuel – plan landing with one hour fuel in tanks Weight and Balance

Survival Proper winter clothing and gear

– below freezing temps and waist deep snow

Kit Up for Winter FlyingMnDOT Office of Aeronautics

Survival kit information and lists websites

http://www.preparedpilot.com/Survival-Kits/Contents.htm

http://www.redcross.org/services/hss/lifeline/fakit.html

Thank you for your participation!