Is it me, or is it Buffalo AFSS?

Every time I go outside of our area, I'm struck by how much better the
weather briefers are when I'm not talking to Buffalo AFSS. There are very
few briefers in Buffalo who do more than read you the numbers. One
exception - before I had my instrument rating, there was one briefer who
was famous in the local pilot community for saying "VFR Flight Not
Recommended" whenever there was a single cloud below 5,000 feet anywhere
in the state.

But when I call Gatineau or London FSS or Burlington, or talk to the
in-person briefer at Oshkosh, I get not just the numbers, but an analysis
of my options and what appears to be happening that wasn't in the
forecast. I've had them suggest a better time to make the trip (either
later in the day or the next day) or a better route. I feel like I'm
talking to a knowledgeable partner who is helping me make a decision, not
just a two legged DUATS reader.

I'm almost tempted to get a cell phone in a different state so when I call
800-WX-BRIEF I get a better AFSS.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
"and by God I *KNOW* what this network is for, and you can't have it."
- Russ Allbery draws a line in the sand for Usenet.
(http://www.xnet.com/~raven/Sysadmin/Rant.html)

You don't need a cell phone, most if not all FSS locations have a direct
toll-free number. AOPA's airport directory lists them. Actually, they were
put in place because of cell phones.
If you are from eastern New York, and you have a cell phone, and you fly to
southwest Pennsylvania and call 1-800-WX-BRIEF you will get Buffalo, or
whatever the closest FSS is in your home area code, not Altoona. (You
probably figured that out.)
I program all the FSS numbers that I use into my cell phone so I can cancel
or file with the correct one.

"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
I'm almost tempted to get a cell phone in a different state so when I call
800-WX-BRIEF I get a better AFSS.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
"and by God I *KNOW* what this network is for, and you can't have it."
- Russ Allbery draws a line in the sand for Usenet.
(http://www.xnet.com/~raven/Sysadmin/Rant.html)

Paul, it could be local knowledge vice no local knowledge.
It all depends on who you get.
I stopped in Central Indiana on the way home from AirVenture a couple
years ago due to a line of tstorms. I spoke with a briefer in Terre
Haute who was very knowledgeable about local conditions and gave me a
good read on what was going on, which way to go for better conditions
and what to expect.

Paul,

I agree with you generaly about just getting the numbers from Buffalo, but
coincidentally, I called for a briefing on Sunday evening, for a short
flight from Batavia to Rochester, and got the kind of informative briefing
you mentioned, from Buffalo. The briefer advised me of the ifr conditions,
icing, and suggested that if I got into ice, the weather improves south of
my proposed route.

Maybe it is a training issue that will improve?

Brad
"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
Every time I go outside of our area, I'm struck by how much better the
weather briefers are when I'm not talking to Buffalo AFSS. There are very
few briefers in Buffalo who do more than read you the numbers. One
exception - before I had my instrument rating, there was one briefer who
was famous in the local pilot community for saying "VFR Flight Not
Recommended" whenever there was a single cloud below 5,000 feet anywhere
in the state.

But when I call Gatineau or London FSS or Burlington, or talk to the
in-person briefer at Oshkosh, I get not just the numbers, but an analysis
of my options and what appears to be happening that wasn't in the
forecast. I've had them suggest a better time to make the trip (either
later in the day or the next day) or a better route. I feel like I'm
talking to a knowledgeable partner who is helping me make a decision, not
just a two legged DUATS reader.

I'm almost tempted to get a cell phone in a different state so when I call
800-WX-BRIEF I get a better AFSS.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
"and by God I *KNOW* what this network is for, and you can't have it."
- Russ Allbery draws a line in the sand for Usenet.
(http://www.xnet.com/~raven/Sysadmin/Rant.html)

Maybe it is a training issue that will improve?

Aren't these the guys who now work for Lockheed? Anyone have an insider's
take on how this transition is going?

I, too, have been struck by the variability between briefers, and it would
appreciate it if Lockheed (or whomever) standardized their methods a bit
more.

Of course, maybe that's what's happening when you get a "by the numbers"
guy/gal on the phone? I hope not.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

In a previous article, "Jay Honeck" said:
I, too, have been struck by the variability between briefers, and it would
appreciate it if Lockheed (or whomever) standardized their methods a bit
more.

I wonder if it's not like ATC, where some of them are pilots and some of
them are just doing a job, and while all of them know the basics of the
job, the ones who are also pilots understand it better from our side and
go that extra mile?


--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
With M$, as far as I'm aware, the stupidity comes bundled with the software.
-- Meg Thornton

Paul Tomblin wrote:

Every time I go outside of our area, I'm struck by how much better the
weather briefers are when I'm not talking to Buffalo AFSS. There are very
few briefers in Buffalo who do more than read you the numbers. One
exception - before I had my instrument rating, there was one briefer who
was famous in the local pilot community for saying "VFR Flight Not
Recommended" whenever there was a single cloud below 5,000 feet anywhere
in the state.

Hey, Paul. I enjoy reading your posts since you are more or less local to
me (My aircraft is based at SYR).

I speak to Buffalo for flight briefings at least three times a week over
the phone and many times while in the air. My observation is that there
are definitely a couple of briefers that stick to a tight script, do not
offer any additional information, and are in a rush to end the call.

A few times I asked the briefers what they thought about the FSS changes
that are going on and in every case I received a mouthful. Some of them
were very close to retirement and are now facing retirement without the US
government benefits package, so they are understandably very disgruntled.

It will probably be this way until the transition to Lockheed Martin is
complete, sometime over the next year and a half. Then it will be an
entirely different game of "What briefer will take my call?"



--
Peter
























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I think you've nailed it. When ever I get a "blah" by the numbers
briefing,
I ask them if they are a pilot. If the weather is questionable and they
are
not a pilot, I ask for a briefer who is. Sometimes one is "available"
sometimes not.

Interesting. I never would have thought of doing that.

We've got one gal at Ft Dodge Flight Service that is so danged friendly and
outgoing that a simple briefing for a local VFR flight can take 20 minutes.
She's a joy to work with, and *is* a pilot.

There's also a guy there, however, who speaks in a monotone, never
volunteers a stitch of information that isn't absolutely required, and is
generally a sour fellow to deal with. VFR flight is NEVER recommended, in
his world.

In his defense, however, once in a while (when all I REALLY want to know is
TFR information) I'm glad to get him, simply because he's "Joe
Friday"-to-the-point, and I know that I won't be on the phone chatting about
the weird weather all morning...

;-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I think you've nailed it. When ever I get a "blah" by the numbers briefing,
I ask them if they are a pilot. If the weather is questionable and they are
not a pilot, I ask for a briefer who is. Sometimes one is "available"
sometimes not.

Jim


"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
In a previous article, "Jay Honeck" said:
I, too, have been struck by the variability between briefers, and it
would
appreciate it if Lockheed (or whomever) standardized their methods a bit
more.

I wonder if it's not like ATC, where some of them are pilots and some of
them are just doing a job, and while all of them know the basics of the
job, the ones who are also pilots understand it better from our side and
go that extra mile?


--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
With M$, as far as I'm aware, the stupidity comes bundled with the
software.
-- Meg Thornton

At McMinnville AFRSS (MMV), there was a female briefer there that was
really a good person to get a briefing from. I actually enjoyed getting
her briefings because she understood what was going on. I can't
remember if she was a pilot, but she definitely had a good personality.
Unfortunately, since MMV is (AFAIK) one of the closing AFSS's in the
transition, I'm going to lose out big time on people who know the area.
(BAD FAA, BAAAADDDD FAA!) She is going to continue providing top
quality briefings in Alaska. She applied for and was awarded a position
up there.

Our (collectively) loss here in the CONUS.

Chris G.



Jay Honeck wrote:
I think you've nailed it. When ever I get a "blah" by the numbers
briefing,
I ask them if they are a pilot. If the weather is questionable and they
are
not a pilot, I ask for a briefer who is. Sometimes one is "available"
sometimes not.


Interesting. I never would have thought of doing that.

We've got one gal at Ft Dodge Flight Service that is so danged friendly and
outgoing that a simple briefing for a local VFR flight can take 20 minutes.
She's a joy to work with, and *is* a pilot.

There's also a guy there, however, who speaks in a monotone, never
volunteers a stitch of information that isn't absolutely required, and is
generally a sour fellow to deal with. VFR flight is NEVER recommended, in
his world.

In his defense, however, once in a while (when all I REALLY want to know is
TFR information) I'm glad to get him, simply because he's "Joe
Friday"-to-the-point, and I know that I won't be on the phone chatting about
the weird weather all morning...

;-)