"Going for the Visual"

We have some airports that have AWOS, but we don't get any of
that info into our computer, but the pilot can receive it.
We have a couple that we have no weather reporting, but the pilot
can get it from their company on the ground, and they let us know.
And theres a couple that MAYBE they can get someone to answer
unicom and get the weather.
There are only a few left I can think of that have no SIAP, no AWOS,
and lucky to have anything living within 20nm of it. Those pilots
usually know what they are dealing with way in advance and have
done it regularly and cancel way out. They arent going to get a
contact approach, those are the ones that will on occasion ask for
a cruise clearance, but those are also airports with sometimes no
phones and no cellular coverage.
In the end it's up to the pilot to get the weather, and if it's not
available we have to advise them of that, too.
Luckily the weather at those airports are VFR probably 350 days
out of the year, but talk about remote. One guy called from a
phonebooth, needed a clearance, but also time to drive back to the
airport (30mins away), get started and go. A couple have recently
worked out private approaches and someone available on the
ground associated with the airplane to get them the weather, Lifeguard
flights usually, with an employee of the hospital nearby giving them
the conditions.
Chris


"Steven P. McNicoll" wrote in message
ink.net...

"SeeAndAvoid" wrote in message
link.net...

It may be shorter, but we are required to know the other two items:
that you have the current weather (atis) and that you have the airport
in sight.


How are you going to know the current weather at fields without weather
reporting?



Can skip that info if pilot advises he has the ATIS, but since the
rule says the controller shall advise of the approach on initial
contact or as soon as possible thereafter, the pilot has to advise
of the ATIS on his initial contact. Most airports I do approaches
to dont have an ATIS, so it's a moot point.

See 7110.65 Par 4-7-10
http://www.faa.gov/atpubs/ATC/Chp4/atc0407.html#4-7-1

4-7-10. APPROACH INFORMATION

a. Both en route and terminal approach control sectors shall provide
current approach information to aircraft destined to airports for which
they
provide approach control services. This information shall be provided on
initial contact or as soon as possible thereafter. Approach information
contained in the ATIS broadcast may be omitted if the pilot states the
appropriate ATIS code or items 3-5 below may be omitted for pilots
destined
to uncontrolled airports when they advise receipt of the automated
weather;
otherwise, issue approach information by including the following:

1. Approach clearance or type approach to be expected if two or more
approaches are published and the clearance limit does not indicate which
will be used.

2. Runway if different from that to which the instrument approach is
made.

3. Surface wind.

4. Ceiling and visibility if the reported ceiling at the airport of
intended landing is below 1,000 feet or below the highest circling
minimum,
whichever is greater, or the visibility is less than 3 miles.

5. Altimeter setting for the airport of intended landing.


I'm going to an uncontrolled field without weather reporting. How are you
going to comply with that paragraph?

"SeeAndAvoid" wrote:
One guy called from a phonebooth, needed a clearance, but also time
to drive back to the airport (30mins away), get started and go.

I believe it's a TERPS requirement that to have an approach you need to
have a working and publicly accessable landline phone on the field.
Don't know anything about departures, though :-)

I once got into a ****ing contest with Verizon (they were probably
calling themselves Bell Atlantic back then) when they tore the only
public phone out of a small airport around here because it wasn't
generating enough revenue. I had gone to call for a clearance and found
the booth still there, but wires just hanging out where there used to be
a phone.

I talked to everybody I could think of (the Public Service Commission,
the FSDO, the airport manager, NY Tracon, AOPA, etc). Nobody seemed too
worried about it.

"SeeAndAvoid" wrote in message
link.net...

We have some airports that have AWOS, but we don't get any of
that info into our computer, but the pilot can receive it.
We have a couple that we have no weather reporting, but the pilot
can get it from their company on the ground, and they let us know.
And theres a couple that MAYBE they can get someone to answer
unicom and get the weather.
There are only a few left I can think of that have no SIAP, no AWOS,
and lucky to have anything living within 20nm of it. Those pilots
usually know what they are dealing with way in advance and have
done it regularly and cancel way out. They arent going to get a
contact approach, those are the ones that will on occasion ask for
a cruise clearance, but those are also airports with sometimes no
phones and no cellular coverage.
In the end it's up to the pilot to get the weather, and if it's not
available we have to advise them of that, too.
Luckily the weather at those airports are VFR probably 350 days
out of the year, but talk about remote. One guy called from a
phonebooth, needed a clearance, but also time to drive back to the
airport (30mins away), get started and go. A couple have recently
worked out private approaches and someone available on the
ground associated with the airplane to get them the weather, Lifeguard
flights usually, with an employee of the hospital nearby giving them
the conditions.


What about those fields with SIAPs but no weather reporting at all?

"Steven P. McNicoll" wrote
What about those fields with SIAPs but no weather reporting at all?

I havent read every approach chart, yet, but I think every one I've
read has a note about whether the procedure is approved or
not without the local altimeter or one from a designated nearby
airport.
"When local altimeter not received, procedure not authorized"
or
"Obtain Local altimeter setting on CTAF; when not received
use XXX altimeter setting"
At one of our tower controlled airports, there is no AWOS/ASOS,
just an ATIS, and when the tower closes it's just a looped recording
until they reopen. But we get the weather hourly in our computer,
so we have to issue it for a/c heading there.
Just glancing through the SW-1 book, I cant find any airports that
dont have some kind of weather reporting, or a note about alternate
weather or saying procedure not authorized.
Then again, AWOS/ASOS's can fail, and there'd be an airport
with an SIAP without weather reporting.
As always it all comes down to the pilot.
Chris

"SeeAndAvoid" wrote in message
link.net...

I havent read every approach chart, yet, but I think every one I've
read has a note about whether the procedure is approved or
not without the local altimeter or one from a designated nearb
airport.
"When local altimeter not received, procedure not authorized"
or
"Obtain Local altimeter setting on CTAF; when not received
use XXX altimeter setting"
At one of our tower controlled airports, there is no AWOS/ASOS,
just an ATIS, and when the tower closes it's just a looped recording
until they reopen. But we get the weather hourly in our computer,
so we have to issue it for a/c heading there.
Just glancing through the SW-1 book, I cant find any airports that
dont have some kind of weather reporting, or a note about alternate
weather or saying procedure not authorized.
Then again, AWOS/ASOS's can fail, and there'd be an airport
with an SIAP without weather reporting.
As always it all comes down to the pilot.


In other words, you cannot do what you said you're required to do.