They are typically used in long haul operations due to the extended flight time between departure and arrival. The AIP stated that ATC-initiated FIS provided pertinent operational information including meteorological conditions and the existence of non-routine meteorological products. These included updates of forecasts and observations and occurred frequently for the remainder of the flight to waypoint BLACK (48 NM or 89 km from Adelaide). The meteorological information obtained from an AWIS is operationally equivalent to that provided in routine observations (METAR) and SPECI reports. 1 tank had 594 kg and the No. While the RNAV GNSS approach had a minima of 660 ft, if the actual aerodrome QNH was obtained from an approved source, this could be reduced to 560 ft. AIP ENR 1.5 section 5.3.2 defines approved sources of actual QNH as ATC and ATIS except when the aerodrome forecast QNH is provided [such as when the actual aerodrome QNH is not available], AWIS and CASAapproved meteorological observers. There was a slight improvement before it again reduced below 1,000 m at 0959, remaining there until 1026 when there were further fluctuations. The BoM reported advising Airservices that the deterioration was unlikely to improve in the next 15 minutes. The ATSBs ongoing investigation will examine the: The information contained in this preliminary report is derived from the initial investigation of the occurrence. The captain reported hearing this transmission while preparing for the approach into Adelaide. An automated pre-recorded transmission indicating the prevailing weather conditions at the aerodrome and other relevant operational information for arriving and departing aircraft. The FCTM cautioned against conducting fuel balancing activities during approach or times of high workload and further states that fuel balancing is to reduce wear and tear on the airframe and landing gear, and not for controllability reasons. This SPECI indicated broken[9] cloud at 200 ft and that the visibility was now 2,100 m in mist. That paper indicated that the ATCinitiated FIS service was mainly designed to inform you of unexpected or non-routine information. While the infrastructure available to flight crews may vary between operators and aircraft, broadly these information sources relate to support from the operator of the aircraft (in this case the airlines) and support from ATC. View the current warnings for Victoria. The crew of Velocity 1384 had commenced their descent to Adelaide and gathered further information about the conditions from the Adelaide tower controller. It is likely that the fuel pumps for the No. inadvertent flight below the minimum permitted altitude. About 10 minutes later, the TTF was amended to forecast fog to occur before the aircraft's arrival time. The aircraft was due at Perth at 0020 WST so in accordance with the operator's fuel policy, fuel was not specifically carried for a diversion to an alternate aerodrome. The availability of a code grey forecast is unique to Australia, and is used to highlight the possibility of weather conditions that airline operators may wish to consider in terms of flight planning. Virgin advised that a review of their operations identified no systemic issue in relation to flight crew seeking weather information. They need at least to admit that the change has happened and they cannot draw any scientific long term conclusions because of it. The review determined that, because the TAF had only a 30 per cent chance of fog and the TTF issued at the same time forecast no deterioration, the amended TAF would not be passed to the flight crew. (c) changes in the serviceability of navigation aids; (d) changes in the condition of aerodromes and associated facilities, including information on the state of the aerodrome movement areas when they are affected by snow, ice, or water; (f) pre-eruption volcanic activity, volcanic eruptions, and volcanic ash clouds; (g) release into the atmosphere of radioactive materials or toxic chemicals; (h) traffic to aircraft likely to be affected; and. Weather Wind Rainfall Sun Moon UV Tides Swell. any additional information that could assist the pilot in the avoidance of hazardous situations. Decision making can be influenced by such factors as workload and stress (Li, 2011; Harris & Li, 2015). The BoM advised the NOC that conditions were unlikely to improve in the next 15 minutes. On the same morning, another B737 aircraft, registered VH-VYK and operated by Qantas Airways, was conducting a scheduled passenger service from Sydney, New South Wales, to Adelaide. At 0940 the crew of Qantas 735 contacted Velocity 1384 to advise that they were commencing the RNAV GNSS approach due fuel. It indicated that, if they became aware of information that was outside their area of responsibility, they may have to address the information to a pilot of an aircraft though another ATC unit. The crew decided to conduct an autopilot-coupled approach with automatic landing, as fog was also present at Edinburgh Airport, rendering that airport unsuitable as an alternate. Observations Sydney Observations All NSW Observations Rainfall & River Conditions VIC VIC Weather & Warnings Warnings Summary Forecasts Melbourne Forecast Vic. As both aircraft were committed to landing at Mildura by this time this would not have influenced the occurrence. Flight planning was required to take into account the requirements for holding fuel in lieu of the requirement to nominate an alternate. Fuel tank capacity is indicated in Table 5. In this amendment the section on the provision of FIS was changed in several areas. Time: 1011 EST Velocity 1384 on final approach to runway 27 Mildura, lands at 1014 EST. The crew replied that the cloud base was at 150 ft AGL and that they had landed off the approach due fuel. However, there was also scope for the provision of air traffic control (ATC)-initiated FIS. Why would any bureau not use worlds best practice to measure temperatures? Here is what vindication looks like: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2018/03/02/alarmists-throw-in-the-towel-on-poor-quality-surface-temperature-data-pitch-for-a-new-global-climate-reference-network/comment-page-1/#comments. Indeed, while it would seem reasonable to assume that there would be dozens of reports detailing the results from such parallel studies none have been made publicly available. While the 0700 amended TAF and 0800 TTF were not required to be sent to the crew under Virgins flight following procedures, not passing the weather removed an important source of information regarding the deteriorating conditions at Adelaide. If the ETA is outside the validity of the TTF, then the weather requirements shall be determined from the current TAF. This speaks volumes about their integrity and character. Unless early consideration was given to a return to Adelaide Airport for an emergency autoland approach, a landing below minima at Mildura Airport was the only option at Mildura Airport. 1 main wing tank. Well done again Jennifer, the lack of overlapping parallel data being made public and the method of measuring temperatures just shows how serious this million dollars a day BOM are about basic standards. Transport Canada, in their document Aeronautical Information Manual RAC Rules of the Air and Air Traffic Services section 1.1.1 ATC and Information Services stated that: Flight information service is provided by ATC units to assist pilots by supplying information concerning known hazardous flight conditions. The crew of Qantas 735 had started collecting weather information proactively prior to this point. They also had sufficient fuel to hold for about 45 minutes beyond their planned arrival time. However, that attempt resulted in a second missed approach. The Manual of Air Traffic Services (MATS) is a joint document of Airservices and the Department of Defence. The NOC was responsible, in part, for liaison with the airlines and the meteorologist was querying the conditions at Mildura in relation to Velocity 1384. As such, there is still a reliance on services such as FIS to provide pilots with an appreciation of deteriorations in weather at certain airports. The ATSB is continuing its investigation into the circumstances surrounding the diversion of a B737 aircraft, registered VH-YIR (YIR) and operated by Virgin Australia, to Mildura, Victoria on 18June 2013. This includes the importance of controller/pilot communication to enhance situation awareness, particularly in regard to nonroutine situations such as deteriorating weather or aircraft low fuel state. Common Traffic Advisory Frequency is the frequency on which pilots operating at a non-towered aerodrome should make positional radio broadcasts. View the current warnings for Victoria. A standard ground aid to landing, comprising two directional radio transmitters: the localizer, which provides direction in the horizontal plane; and the glideslope, for vertical plane direction, usually at an inclination of 3. The flight crew of Qantas 735 proactively sought weather information for various airports soon after departing Sydney. The exchange between ATC and Qantas735was not captured on Velocity 1384s cockpit voice recording as it only recorded the 2hours preceding engine shutdown. Supporting this decision, the flight crew had also calculated that they had sufficient fuel to hold for about 45 minutes beyond their planned arrival time without using the fixed fuel reserve. In the case of the occurrence flights, as the TAF for Adelaide that was used for flight planning did not require an alternate, each aircraft departed with sufficient fuel to reach Adelaide and land with the stipulated fuel reserves intact. The action by the crew of Qantas 735 at 0816 to seek additional information from ATC in relation to the clearance of the fog at Adelaide was to inform their decision-making as they approached the DPA. For the deterioration at Adelaide, ATC did not need to use the Hazard Alert prefix as the deterioration was in a current meteorological product. The flight crew of Qantas 735 queried the fog at Adelaide Airport with the en route controller in the sector prior to Tailem Bend, at around 0816. The crew of Velocity 1384 were unaware of the fog and from this point commenced collecting further information and planning their diversion to Mildura. Observations were drawn from Mildura Airport {station 076031}. Distance measuring equipment or marker beacons along the approach provide distance information. Warning, rainfall and river information are available at www.bom.gov.au/nsw/flood. Table 1 in the above blog post shows that the electronic probe currently recording measurements at Mildura is recording warmer than a mercury thermometer would this is not yet even acknowledged by the Bureau, there is certainly no adjusting down to compensate! The FO of Velocity 1384 was absent from the flight deck and the captain reported preparing for the approach into Adelaide at that time. Regardless, a return to Adelaide would have necessitated an automated landing by both crews in conditions that, like Mildura, were below landing minima and therefore constituted an emergency. For example, METARs are reported every 30minutes, SPECI are reported when criteria are met and AWIS reports are updated every minute. These included a RNAV GNSS approach to runway 27 with a minima of 660 ft and a Distance Measuring Equipment (DME)[16] or GNSS arrival, to be used with the Mildura non-directional beacon (NDB)[17] or VHF omnidirectional radio range (VOR)[18] ground-based navigation aids. However, it is often not practical to provide for a further alternate once a diversion has been initiated. In September 2007, the MATS was entirely reformatted and the reference to amendments changed to versions, with version1 being effective on 7 September 2007. At 0916, an air ambulance pilot who was departing Mildura Airport made a call to the Mallee sector air traffic controller, who was responsible for the airspace above Mildura. This display, together with an explanation of the LOW FUEL, FUEL CONFIGURATION and FUEL IMBALANCE indications, is expanded at Figure 5. Another Virgin aircraft then asked ATC to clarify if that report was for Melbourne, to which ATC responded negative, Adelaide. These conditions include thunderstorms, hail storms and fog. This information is sourced from the airports AWS and is generally broadcast continuously and updated every minute. Both reported considering the observation reports that were current at the time as a more reliable indicator of the weather at Mildura Airport than the relevant forecast. 0. After scrutiny of the A8 forms actually provided, however, it appeared that the extent of parallel readings for the probe installed on 27 June 2012 would be limited to just the eight months July 2012 to February 2013 except that the BoM had omitted to scan September 2012 the one month that could provide a direct measure of the equivalence of the relevant probe for that time of year at that location. Mildura Weather Forecast, VIC 3500 - WillyWeather. Exposure to weather conditions below the landing minima at Mildura was found to be very unlikely during the period studied. This claim, however, cannot be verified because the BoM uses a non-standard method for recording temperatures at Mildura, and furthermore the parallel data provided to me in December 2017 as proof of equivalence is flawed and deficient. Minima at Mildura by this time this would not have influenced the occurrence there 1026... 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