Hello, my name is Ben Lovegrove and in this video I'm going to read a section of the CAA's
Safety Sense Leaflet Number 3 - Winter Flying.
The leaflet has been reproduced here in video format with the kind permission of the CAA.
To download a copy of this (or any other in the series) to print off or store on your
device please visit www.caa.co.uk/safetysense
INTRODUCTION. The purpose of this video is to advise pilots/operators
of aeroplanes, helicopters and microlights of some of the problems they may encounter
while flying in winter.
FLIGHT PREPARATION.
a) If you are planning to visit another aerodrome, make sure it is open. Mud, snow, flooding
or frozen ruts may have necessitated closure. Daylight and airport operating hours are also
much shorter in winter.
b) Never fly in icing conditions for which the aircraft is not cleared. Do not be misled
into thinking that because an aircraft is fitted with de-icing, or anti-icing, equipment,
it is necessarily effective in all conditions. Most general aviation aeroplanes are not cleared
for flight in icing conditions, although some protection may be given. Those cleared are
generally cleared only for flight in light icing conditions (the equivalent of a build-up
of 12 mm (1/2 inch) of ice in 40 nautical miles). General aviation helicopters are not
cleared. (See Pilots' Operating Handbooks, Flight Manuals, etc.)
c) Continued flight into bad weather is the number one killer in UK general aviation.
Get an up-to-date aviation weather forecast. The current ‘GET MET’ booklet explains
how (copies available from the Met Office).
d) The most likely temperature range for airframe icing is from 0 to -10°C; it rarely occurs
at –20°C or colder (see paragraph 6(c) for carburettor icing conditions). Pay attention
to any icing warnings. Note the freezing level, it can be surprisingly low even in spring
and autumn; you may need to descend below it to melt an ice build-up; but beware of
high ground. Remember also that altimeters over-read in very low air temperatures, by
as much as several hundred feet. You can be lower than you think.
e) If you are likely to encounter ice en-route, have you room to descend to warmer air? Will
the airspace or performance allow you to climb to cold, clear air? (Note that any ice build-up
may not melt and will degrade cruise performance.) Can you land safely at your destination? If
the answers to these questions are NO, don’t go.
f) Prepare an accurate route plan with time markers, including an alternative in case
you do encounter ice/snow. The countryside looks very different when covered by a blanket
of snow and familiar landmarks may have disappeared.
g) Wet snow, slush or mud can seriously lengthen the take-off run or prevent take-off altogether.
Check the Flight Manual and SafetySense Leaflet 7 ‘Aeroplane Performance’, and allow a
generous safety margin, especially from grass.
h) Have a cloth handy for de-misting the inside of the windows while taxiing.
i) Dress sensibly (you should spend some time outside whilst preflighting the aircraft),
and have additional warm clothing available in case of heater failure or a forced landing.
j) Some parts of the UK will be pretty inhospitable in winter (e.g. much of Wales and Scotland)
so, especially if you are in a single-engined aircraft, file a flight plan and carry a few
survival items in case of a forced landing. Warm clothing is essential, but consider a
Personal Locator Beacon, as well as a silvered survival bag, torch/mirror and whistle for
signalling.
k) Be prepared to divert and carry a night-stop kit. Don't put pressure on yourself to get
home if the weather deteriorates. l) Read AICs 86/2007 (Pink 126) ‘Risks and Factors
Associated with Operations on Runways Contaminated with Snow, Slush or Water’ and 106/2004
(Pink 74) ‘Frost, Ice and Snow on Aircraft’. These are orientated to larger aircraft but
do have useful information for General Aviation.
m) When snow has fallen, check SNOWTAMs in the NOTAM series, if available, to find out
if your proposed destination, and alternate(s), are open and which operational areas have
been cleared. If there is an eight-digit code at the end of a METAR, it shows that winter
conditions affect that aerodrome. It may be easiest to telephone them. The first two digits
of the eight-digit code are the runway, and the last two the braking action. AIP GEN paragraph
3.5.10.12 gives further details/decode. Know the effect that braking action described as,
for example, POOR will have on the landing/abandoned take-off distance you need to have available.
Bear in mind the effects of a crosswind combined with an icy runway.
That's the end of this section of the CAA's Safety Sense Leaflet Number 3 - Winter Flying.
If you have any additional tips or experiences you would like to pass on then please post
a comment below.
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