Legal Weather Sources?

There are "other" (private) weather services that if they predict
minimums on their TAF that are ok for you to go (part 135 and 23 etc),
and the govt has them below min, you can use them and you are good to
go. Some airlines use them. I do not know which ones or how they are
"certified", but they do (or did) exist.

On 28 Mar 2006 08:34:28 -0800, "Denny" wrote:

A recorded briefing from 1-800-wx brief puts the ball back on the feds
side of the court if there is a legal dispute...
The government has lost at least one suit by the pilot's widow over a
briefer failing to fully inform the pilot... Recently I wanted only a
specific piece of information from the briefer about fog along the
lakeshore, but he wasn't having any of that... He insisted on going

I request an "abbreviated briefing" and specify what I want. I haven't
had them argue yet although I have had them ask for clarification.
Usually I ask if there are any TFRs likely to pop up along the route,
SUAs , and I may tell them I've already have the weather for the route
and have been following DUATs for the past two days as well as the
current maps.

through wx, SA for the route of flight, forecast, winds aloft, notams,
tfr, etc... I suspect their legal department had a warning out over
condensed briefings...

He ended with the usual VFR flight not recommended so what's new...
I countered with "driving home after working a long shift not

I've mentioned this one before, but...
Maybe it was that the weather was so bad any way, but that time coming
out of Kansans some years back when it was "expect ceilings 1500 or
less, visibility 5 or less with both much less in many instances of
heavy rain", followed by "have a good trip" for a VFR briefing.
Surface winds were 30 G 50 and over a 100 knots at 500 feet with
tornado watches out for the route and warnings out a bit farther.
Around here it they would have said everything except, "don't go".
OTOH I'd been talking with these guys regularly over the previous few
days while flying in some "interesting" weather.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com

recommended"... He laughed...

denny

Peter wrote:


These sources may be "authorised" but is there anything in the FARs
which makes the sourcing of weather data from other providers illegal?

This is particularly relevant to N-reg aircraft flying outside the
USA... they do that sometimes

No one cares unless there is an accident or serious incident. If there
is, which involves weather, and there is no record of an official
briefing, the FAA can reasonable conclude that you failed to obtain the
necessary preflight information. The burden is upon the pilot (or his
estate~) to prove compliance when there is no FAA or approved vendor record.

The biz jets that often fly outside the U.S. invaribly use one of the
approved vendors on that FAA list.

The U.S. air carriers have their own approved weather services so they
are always covered.

Peter wrote:

If there
is, which involves weather, and there is no record of an official
briefing, the FAA can reasonable conclude that you failed to obtain the
necessary preflight information. The burden is upon the pilot (or his
estate~) to prove compliance when there is no FAA or approved vendor record.


I am not doubting you, but do you have a FAR reference for this?

FAR 91.103 (a)

Isn't the implicit burden apparent?

On 2006-04-01, Sam Spade wrote:
No one cares unless there is an accident or serious incident. If there
is, which involves weather, and there is no record of an official
briefing, the FAA can reasonable conclude that you failed to obtain the
necessary preflight information.

So print out the weather from the 'unofficial' source, so when you do
crash, they'll find your weather self-briefing in the wreckage. Of
course, if you're dead it's not going to do you a lot of good, but at
least you won't be posthumously convicted of not getting all the
information...

--
Dylan Smith, Port St Mary, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Oolite-Linux: an Elite tribute: http://oolite-linux.berlios.de
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net

"Dylan Smith" wrote in message
...
On 2006-04-01, Sam Spade wrote:
No one cares unless there is an accident or serious incident. If there
is, which involves weather, and there is no record of an official
briefing, the FAA can reasonable conclude that you failed to obtain the
necessary preflight information.

So print out the weather from the 'unofficial' source, so when you do
crash, they'll find your weather self-briefing in the wreckage.

Unless it burns up, blows away, gets drenched, etc. Leaving it at home is
probably a better idea. (When we do Angel Flights, we have to mail the
signed liability waivers before the flight rather than taking the waivers on
the plane.)

--Gary