Back before the days of Nexrad on a GPS screen, controllers were usually the only resource for pilots of light airplanes without weather radar to avoid bad weather. Even though their screens were not optimized for showing weather, they could usually steer a pilot around the worst areas. Controllers have also been very helpful in pointing out conflicting traffic. Most of the time the traffic has been “no factor,” but every once in a while I am very glad I got the alert from the controller.
The problem with all this wonderful help from controllers is that we can begin to rely on them too much. We can figure that as long as the controller has us on his screen, we don’t need to watch for traffic as much, or we don’t have to worry about the weather ahead, or it doesn’t matter if we are not aware of restricted airspace up ahead. Murphy’s Law states that just when we need the controller’s help the most is when the controller will let us down. The problem is that we never know when the controller is not paying attention to us at that moment, or has decided that it is none of his business if we fly into a mountain or thunderstorm.
