Given the actions of the Qantas 735 crew (who did obtain the weather) to continue to Adelaide, this decision would have been reasonable. 1h 1d . A number of reviews of the ATSB occurrence database were carried out in an effort to understand the potential operational and other factors in this occurrence. While this is theoretically possible, to know if it is being achieved in practice it is necessary to analyse parallel measurements i.e. The airport runway has the capability to handle aircraft such as the . Aerodrome Forecasts are a statement of meteorological conditions expected for a specific period of time, in the airspace within a radius of 5 NM (9 km) of the aerodrome. For an understanding of the aircrafts positions at this time, see Figure 1. However, given the observations of significantly better weather at Mildura, they also concluded a diversion was a better option at that time. They also cautioned that observations should only be used if the arrival time was proximal to the observation and, if the forecast indicated conditions below minima, the forecast would have precedence over observations. Winds southerly 20 to 30 km/h becoming light in the late evening. An automated pre-recorded transmission indicating the prevailing weather conditions at the aerodrome and other relevant operational information for arriving and departing aircraft. Fax:(03) 5021 1899 Fuel required to enable the aircraft to fly from that point to 1500 ft above an adequate aerodrome, make an approach and land; and, Variable Reserve based on the point above but not more than the Maximum Variable Reserve; and, Fuel to provide for WX [weather] holding, if the weather at the selected adequate aerodrome is forecast to be below the applicable alternate minima or a probability of thunderstorms is forecast; and, Fuel to provide for any required TFC [traffic] holding at the selected adequate aerodrome; and. Mildura - Victoria. In response to this occurrence the ATSB issued a safety recommendation to Airservices. LOW VIS PROCSWND 360/5, MAX DW 5 KTS.VIS 500M IN FOGCLD FEW015TMP 6.QNH 1020, SPECI YPAD 172300Z 04006KT 0150 FG BKN000 06/06 Q1021RMK RF00.0/000.0TTF: FM2330 05005KT 9999 FEW025, METAR YMIA 172300Z 23004KT 9999 BKN039 07/06 Q1019RMK RF00.0/000.2, TAF YPAD 172302Z 1800/1906VRB05KT 9999 FEW030 SCT045FM181000 VRB05KT CAVOKFM190000 04008KT CAVOKRMKT 11 14 15 11 Q 1020 1020 1020 1021, TAF YMIA 172302Z 1800/181220008KT 9999 SCT030 SCT050RMKT 08 12 13 10 Q 1020 1019 1019 1020, ATIS YPAD Y 172311APCH: EXP INST APCHRWY: 23OPR INFO: HIAL ON. In contrast, the crew of Qantas 735 had greater time to make that assessment. By Julie Mercer. Whomsoever is in charge of this outfit must be a cowboy, and the workers presumably lazy cattle hands who just go with the flow. The submissions were reviewed and where considered appropriate, the text of the report was amended accordingly. At the time of release of this report, the BoM was progressing the action items from the report and will discuss the outcomes with CASA. Section 10.2.4 contained the caveat that: It should be remembered that the controllers primary function is to provide safe separation between aircraft. This was despite the fact that the AWIS was not broadcasting, as communicated in the NOTAM. The ATSB calculated that, at 0918 when the first SPECI associated with the low cloud at Mildura was issued, Qantas 735 had sufficient fuel to hold at cruise altitude until about 0955 then return to Adelaide and complete an emergency autoland with the fixed fuel reserve intact. While the 0700 amended TAF and 0800 TTF were not required to be sent to the crew under Virgins flight following procedures, not passing the weather removed an important source of information regarding the deteriorating conditions at Adelaide. This service responds to in-flight requests for operational information from pilots operating in all classes of airspace on air traffic control VHF frequencies or high frequencies (HF). The amendment also introduced the following change regarding the availability of aerodrome weather reports (METAR/SPECI): In addition, when there was a sudden change in pertinent operational information that was not described in a current meteorological product or NOTAM, and the change had an immediate and detrimental effect on the safety of an aircraft, ATC would communicate this change to pilots with the prefix Hazard Alert. Automatic En Route Information Service (AERIS), Aerodrome Weather Information Service (AWIS), and. There is no regulatory requirement to carry alternate aerodrome fuel in the case of a code grey forecast and they are not routinely referred to by short haul flight crew or in the construction of flight plans for short haul domestic operations. The operations controller was responsible for overseeing the Virgin flight network, including coordinating air traffic control (ATC) slot times for arrivals. All of the directly involved parties were provided with a draft report and invited to provide submissions. As a result of this development, the forecaster issued an amended TAF for Mildura at 0952 that was valid from 1000. The captain of Qantas 735 reported feeling that the observation reports were more reliable given the inaccuracy of the forecast at Adelaide. They reported to Airservices that this was due to high workload at the time, and a consideration that the information in the pilots report did not differ significantly to the forecast TEMPO conditions. Central Flight Watch desk dissolved and Flight Following introduced mid 2014 with desks split up into regions and Flight Following assigned to individual desks. However, it is also worth noting that the on-request service is workload dependent, and is therefore not guaranteed. In order to provide some airline operators an advance notice about such low probability weather conditions that may interrupt flight operations, the BoM issues an aerodrome weather briefing (AWB) product and, if applicable, a code grey forecast. Manual input of visibility, weather and cloud is for an area within a radius of approximately 5 NM of the ARP [aerodrome reference point]. In line with Airservices Australia (Airservices) procedures, as Mildura broadcast weather information via an Aerodrome Weather Information Service (AWIS)[7], the controller responsible for this sector was not automatically-provided with the SPECI reports at their console. At around 0957, the systems supervisor again called BoM for an appreciation of the weather as Velocity 1384 was compelled to land at Mildura. It is not routinely made available outside these organisations and is not made available to pilots or operators. 269283. In particular, in relation to this occurrence, it was noted that pilots would have expected the crews of Velocity 1384 and Qantas 735 to have been told of the fog at Adelaide prior to changing to the Tailem Bend sector frequency. Boeing 737-800 aircraft were unable to use Broken Hill due to runway pavement limitations. These reports: The on-request service is available to all aircraft in all classes of airspace on VHF or HF. These include increased monitoring and support as required and the potential to reduce pilot workload in stressful situations. Applicable to this occurrence, where the valid TAF indicated weather below landing minima at the destination, and a recent observation report indicated weather above the minima (without a trend specified, that is no TTF), CASA reported that: for in-flight planning considerations the decision making must be based on the forecast element so a pilot must hold an alternate and applicable fuel but is able to make a decision to attempt an approach at the destination should the flight crew calculate additional fuel is available to do so. Officers may, at times, experience situations not specifically covered whereby the safety of an aircraft may be considered to be in doubt. 128 km Mildura Radar Loop Provides access to meteorological images of the Australian weather watch radar of rainfall and wind. More particularly, they indicate specific times when weather information was issued by the Bureau of Meteorology or Airservices Australia. The AvCam project [will] provide an additional tool for forecasters to assess current weather conditions, including fog, to supplement human observations or other automated present weather sensors and instrumentation. As such, they did not always represent a significant or unforecast deterioration. This magazine was produced by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and distributed to pilots and other aviation personnel. The reasons for reviewing Trend Forecast services include: Aviation Cameras for Forecasters (AvCam). Shortly after both crew initiated a diversion to Mildura, the BoM released an amended TAF for Mildura, removing the TEMPO requirement. FIS should not serve as the sole source of aviation weather and other operational information. The order of precedence in the provision of FIS by controllers was indicated as: Where air traffic service units provide both flight information and air traffic control services, give precedence to the provision of air traffic control over flight information, unless doing so would compromise safety. The forecast TEMPO was still considered by BoM to be appropriate for the conditions; however, at around 0930, the visibility at Mildura abruptly decreased. The broadcast is usually continuous with updates available on a minute by minute basis. In situations where crew are primed to search for information, it is more likely that considered decision making will occur in a less stressful environment and that the associated workload will reduce. The MATS also outlined the responsibility of air traffic service officers in relation to how information was to be communicated to relevant aircraft. The captain was the pilot flying and the first officer (FO) was the pilot monitoring. Employed to minimise unnecessary distractions during critical phases of flight. The BoM subsequently advised the ATSB that there was no procedure in place to require a forecaster to request multiple reports of deteriorating weather before amending a forecast. I am dragging up my old university stats to understand what you are on about. 1 main wing tank. In such cases there is a residual risk that the aircraft may be compelled to land in conditions below the landing minima. From the evidence available, the following findings are made with respect to the landing below minima due to fog involving two Boeing 737s, registered VH-YIR and VH-VYK, which occurred at Mildura Airport, Victoria on 18 June 2013. The overall assessment was considered minor and approved by the relevant managers. In part, these included: (b) FISE: the exchange on the FISE [flight information service en route] frequency of information pertinent to the en-route phase of flight. . In response to this occurrence, the ATSB also initiated research into the reliability of weather forecasts in Australia, initially at Adelaide and Mildura Airports (see the section ATSB research investigation). The reduced visibility at Adelaide Airport, South Australia that led to the diversion also affected a number of other aircraft, including another B737. Aerodrome Weather Information Service (AWIS). The section relating to the provision of FIS was substantially the same as version 7 of the MATS. http://www.bom.gov.au/fwo/IDV60801/IDV60801.94693.json. Their arrival at Mildura Airport in the now deteriorated weather meant that they had insufficient fuel to divert to another airport. On 20 August 1999, as the Airbus A320 aircraft, registered VH-HYO, approached runway 23 at Adelaide Airport, South Australia for landing, the crew observed a bank of fog drifting toward the aerodrome from the north-east. It stated that FIS was to include operational information about meteorological conditions and hazard alerts. At 1002, Velocity 1384 transmitted that they were on a 4 NM (7 km) final for the RNAV GNSS approach. Slight chance of a shower. http://www.bom.gov.au/fwo/IDV60801/IDV60801.94693.axf, JavaScript Object Notation format (JSON) in row-major order The size of the change was assessed as small and the magnitude of the change as reasonable. The action by the crew of Qantas 735 at 0816 to seek additional information from ATC in relation to the clearance of the fog at Adelaide was to inform their decision-making as they approached the DPA. For a large jet aircraft, this position is typically within 30minutes flight time of the AWIS and occurs during a period of increased crew workload associated with the descent. As the wind was forecast to tend southerly, and fog and low cloud were rare in a southerly flow at Mildura, the decision was made to continue with the current TEMPO. Despite the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) knowing of the deteriorating weather at Mildura from other sources, by not passing on the in-flight weather report of deteriorating weather from the departing air ambulance pilot, the controller removed an important source of information for use by the BoM. That is, crews must carry sufficient fuel to meet the forecast requirements affecting a destination, even if the observations at that location indicate that the weather is suitable for an arrival. The Bureau of Meteorology advised of various system changes and improvements in response to this occurrence. AIP GEN 3.5 paragraph 4.1 defined aerodrome weather reports as: reports of observations of meteorological conditions at an aerodrome. number of redundancies available in the event of a system component failure. Virgin and Qantas each had a fuel policy within their operations manual, which specified the minimum fuel required, including the necessary fixed fuel reserves. Light winds. The ATSB found that the weather deterioration at Adelaide did not appear on the forecast when both aircraft departed their respective ports and furthermore the forecast duration of the fog in the later, amended forecast showed a clearance time earlier than actually occurred. The controller could request specific SPECI reports for an airport if required; however, only those SPECI reports that covered airports without an ABS would be automatically sent to the controllers workstation. In response, in December 2008, Airservices conducted a Safety Case Assessment and Reporting Determination (SCARD), which was required whenever: changes to service levels, procedures or equipment, which will affect the performance, functional or technical specification of a system or service; and organisational changes affecting safety accountabilities. The BoM Aeronautical Services Handbook (ASH), which is available as guidance for staff, lists the priorities for the provision of services. At 0844, when Velocity 1384 and Qantas 735 were both on the Tailem Bend sector frequency, the controller provided the following information: Qantas seven-thirty-five and Velocity thirteen-eighty-four you are probably both aware of the weather in Adelaide at the moment. That was, the FO was not expecting to necessarily be sent amended weather by flight following personnel. On this basis, the controller did not update the incoming aircraft of this deterioration. These are useful, for example, for identifying fog and low cloud, which may not be visible in thermal infrared images because it has a similar temperature to the ground below. Another Virgin aircraft then asked ATC to clarify if that report was for Melbourne, to which ATC replied negative, Adelaide. At the time of this occurrence, runway 16 at Melbourne Airport, Victoria was the only location in Australia with: At the time of the occurrence, Adelaide Airport was certified for CAT I ILS with autoland. Altimeter barometric pressure subscale setting to provide altimeter indication of height above mean seal level in that area. The next routine forecast will be issued at 4:30 pm EDT Thursday. Oh dear Dr Marohasy, BoM must be triggered by this post: https://thewest.com.au/news/weather/bureau-of-meteorology-staff-step-up-industrial-action-ng-b88757610z. en route weather phenomena that may affect the safety of aircraft operations (SIGMET). The BoM further stated that forecast amendments are based on a number of factors and not limited to aerodrome weather reports. This resulted in the need for both Qantas 735 and Velocity 1384 to land in conditions that were below minima. In relation to a change in weather conditions after DPA, the manual contained the following note: It is recognised that there are occasions when a flight may pass DPA with the required fuel on board and a subsequent deterioration in forecast weather may then result in the minimum mandatory requirements above not being met. The recorded ATC information from the occurrence show that the Mallee controller did broadcast a SPECI to all aircraft inbound to Mildura; however, this did not occur until 0936. The crew of Velocity 1384 reported using the observation reports to confirm their understanding of Milduras suitability as an alternate destination. Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) describes weather conditions that require pilots to fly primarily by reference to instruments, and therefore under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR), rather than by outside visual references. Meanwhile, if we consider the residual available parallel data the very hottest days according to readings from the electronic probe (30 November 2012, 18 January 2013, 5 January 2013, 8 January 2013, 6 January 2013, 1 December 2013, highest to lowest) have no equivalent reading from a mercury thermometer. At the time that Velocity 1384 departed Brisbane, the TAF current for their arrival into Adelaide forecast fine conditions. These occurrences were investigated by the ATSB website and are detailed below. Airservices Australia (Airservices) advised that a diversion in these circumstances would not generally trigger controllers or supervisors to increase their monitoring of conditions at the alternate. Time: 1011 EST Velocity 1384 on final approach to runway 27 Mildura, lands at 1014 EST. This TTF forecast that the fog would now remain until 0930. As a result, the ATSB sought clarification from CASA on the extent to which pilots are able to use observation reports for in-flight planning decisions, such as to continue to the destination or initiate a diversion. 2 tank is integral with the right main wing and the centre fuel tank is located within the fuselage and extends into each wing. AWIS allows for the actual weather conditions at suitably-equipped locations to be accessed by telephone and, at some locations, the information is also broadcast on VHF. Other formats To print this page, get the PDF version (one page, 45 kb ). While it is official BoM policy to ensure that there is approximately five-years of overlapping parallel data when there is a site move or equipment change at an official weather station, this policy appears to be rarely implemented. These, and other factors, are investigated in detail in ATSB research report AR-2013-200. 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