Weather Accidents

Again we follow in the footsteps of the late crash investigator Macarthur Job and focus on aviation accidents. This time, instead of taking a look at forecast ingredients, well look at cases of where the pilots simply made the wrong decisions for the weather.

Tim Vasquez

Wednesday, November 15, 2017 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Mesoscale weather phenomena, like outflow boundaries, are difficult to forecast and can create sudden, dangerous conditions for pilots, emphasizing the importance of utilizing modern radar tools for self-briefing.
Disregarding comprehensive weather briefings and proceeding into challenging conditions (e.g., turbulence, icing, terrain obscurement) can lead to loss of situational awareness and controlled flight into terrain.
Both featured accidents underscore that pilot overconfidence, an incomplete understanding of actual weather hazards, and poor decision-making are critical factors leading to aviation incidents.

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Again we follow in the footsteps of the late crash investigator Macarthur Job and focus on aviation accidents. This time, instead of taking a look at forecast ingredients, we’ll look at cases of where the pilots simply made the wrong decisions for the weather.

Of course, no one climbs into the cockpit expecting things to go wrong, and I would venture to say every pilot takes off confident they can handle the weather. However, NTSB files of weather-related accidents are filled with stories of overconfidence and incomplete understandings of the real situation that’s taking place. Our analyses will hopefully let you improve the record by adding your knowledge distilled from the forecasts.