Winter Runways

The chief advantage of being instrument-rated is being able to travel in less-than-ideal weather. But, in winter, the triumph of a well-flown ILS to minimums in moderate snow can quickly turn to sheer terror after your smooth touchdown if you find yourself slipping off the side of an icy runway.Handling the aircraft is one thing; but, we must first understand what information is available about runway conditions, and how we can use that information to enhance our decision making and influence our technique.

Key Takeaways:

• Braking action reports provide subjective, qualitative assessments (Good, Fair, Poor, Nil) of runway conditions from pilots or airport management, disseminated by ATC, and are crucial for understanding expected aircraft braking.
• Runway friction reports offer quantitative measurements (MU values on a 0-100 scale), with 40 or less indicating deteriorating braking performance, but the FAA advises against relying solely on these for landing distance assessments due to their variability and lack of direct correlation with qualitative terms.
• Pilots must integrate all available information—subjective braking action reports, quantitative friction reports, aircraft performance, and weather—to make sound decisions regarding runway operations, as "NIL" braking action requires immediate runway closure.

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