The NTSB says pilots and air traffic controllers need to cooperate better to keep airplanes from flying into extreme weather. In a safety alert issued last week, the NTSB says avoiding thunderstorms is mainly the pilot’s responsibility but air traffic controller training and briefings “have not been sufficient to ensure that pilots receive the weather advisories needed to support good in-flight weather avoidance decisions.” The alert cited four fatal accidents in which the aircraft involved were flying IFR and under ATC control when they hit the weather. Among the accidents cited was the one that killed former test pilot Scott Crossfield in Georgia last April.h
The NTSB safety alert acknowledges that the primary responsibility of ATC is to maintain separation, but that it has the secondary role of monitoring and warning pilots about hazardous flight conditions. The alert notes that the quality of information is bound to be inconsistent because of the wide variations in equipment available to controllers. Some see the world in black and white via decades-old analog stations while others can see remarkable detail in a storm’s behavior as reflected by radar returns from water droplets. Pilots are urged to never assume that controllers are watching the weather ahead for them and controllers are reminded that pilots can’t necessarily see what they’re up against.
NTSB Issues Alert On Thunderstorm Avoidance
Key Takeaways:
- The NTSB urges better cooperation between pilots and air traffic controllers to prevent extreme weather-related accidents, noting that current ATC weather training and advisories are often insufficient.
- While pilots hold primary responsibility for weather avoidance, ATC's secondary role of warning about hazards is challenged by inconsistent controller equipment and training.
- The alert advises pilots against assuming controllers are monitoring all weather for them and reminds controllers that pilots may lack full visibility of hazardous conditions.
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