Post by TCU 2U2 on Feb 19, 2013 10:38:26 GMT -5
Decreased activity causes changes at Lubbock airport
Air traffic controllers will assist with weather observations
By JENNIFER LOESCH
AVALANCHE-JOURNAL
Decreased airport traffic has caused the Federal Aviation Administration to make some changes to operations at Preston Smith International Airport.
An FAA report shows that in 2000, Lubbock’s airport recorded 115,787 operations, but in 2012 the airport recorded just 79,702 operations. The FAA’s reports are available for the public on its website.
Air traffic controllers will assist with daily weather operations once the contracted weather observers are gone, according to a statement released by the FAA.
Lynn Lunsford, a spokesman for the FAA, released the following statement: “The Federal Aviation Administration continues to provide a high level of weather information for pilots using Lubbock’s Preston Smith International Airport. Due to lower traffic levels, the facility no longer qualifies for contract weather observation. This service, which primarily consists of supplementing information from the (airport’s) sophisticated automated weather station, is now being performed by specially trained air traffic controllers. The level of safety will not be affected.”
The sophisticated automated weather station Lunsford reffered to an automated surface observation system. It has been at the airport since 1995, according to the National Weather Service.
Meteorologist Mark Conder said the ASOS is a standard piece of meteorological equipment, but a fair amount of sophisticated knowledge is required to interpret the data collected.
It is a metal mast about 30 feet in length that measures wind speed, wind direction, temperature, visibility, pressure and humidity. Conder said it also detects approaching weather systems.
The National Weather Service in Lubbock said it has not been officially notified by the FAA. However, the local branch was made aware of the situation by a supervisor at the local contract weather office, according to an email sent by Steve Cobb, an NWS science and operations officer.
In his email, Cobb said he was told a dozen other airports in the country will be losing their contract weather observers, as well.
Cobb said the NWS has not been told what the FAA’s future plans are for supplemental weather observations and the quality control of the ASOS.
“The Lubbock (contract weather observation) closing will mean that the onsite FAA personnel will likely become responsible for or have the option to supplement the automated observation with any operationally significant remarks,” Cobb wrote.
Cobb said during equipment outages or when unfavorable conditions are reported, the observers at the airport make observations and provide information relevant to air traffic operation.
Observers provide information the ASOS is not capable of perceiving, such as the presence and location of thunderstorms, lightning, tornadoes, hail and rainfall that hasn’t reached the ground, Cobb said.
“Since we are responsible for issuing forecasts for the Lubbock terminal, as well as local severe weather warnings, the accuracy and reliability of these hazardous weather elements as well as routine observations are very important to us,” Cobb wrote.
To comment on this story:
jennifer.loesch@morris.com
• 766-2159
leesha.faulkner@lubbockonline.com • 766-8706
QUESTION / ANSWER SECTION:
I'm an actual observer at the Lubbock Airport who's job this article discusses. I'm going to try to answer some of your questions.
1.) Yes, there are 8 National Weather Service certified weather observer employees at the station. Some are full time, others part-time, and even some as-needed employees for filling in at a moment's notice. We are required to man the station 24/7/365, so there is someone always on duty. Some of our observers have decades of experience and the rest have extensive meteorological knowledge. We all will be laid off on May 1 of this year if we cannot get this decision changed.
2.) Our info is used by every pilot who flies into and out of Lubbock International. This includes all the commercial airliners, shipping companies (FedEX, UPS, private overnight shippers), Military aircraft, airborne medical transporters, private pilots, and more. We report directly to air traffic control so they can keep the focus on aircraft flying into and out of the hub city without having to stop what they are doing and spend time trying to properly interpret what are sometimes highly variable conditions around the airport. In addition to aviation users, National Weather Service meteorologists also keep track of our observations for their forecasts and for making decisions when issuing severe weather warnings. The data we collect is also used by researchers all over the globe as we are the official climate station of record for Lubbock.
3.) When there isn't an outage or significant weather, we are constantly watching the skies and surrounding weather for changes (i.e. a thunderstorm that is just getting started, blowing dust that can disrupt aircraft, sudden changes in visibility, etc) and issuing required hourly updates. The automated station can lag significant weather reporting by up to 20 minutes, so we are ever vigilent. If something goes wrong, it is weather related, and we miss report it or don't report it at all, it is grounds for immediate termination so we never let our guard down.
I hope that answers some questions. I would encourage the reporter to follow up with us if they would like more answers to enhance this story.
Air traffic controllers will assist with weather observations
By JENNIFER LOESCH
AVALANCHE-JOURNAL
Decreased airport traffic has caused the Federal Aviation Administration to make some changes to operations at Preston Smith International Airport.
An FAA report shows that in 2000, Lubbock’s airport recorded 115,787 operations, but in 2012 the airport recorded just 79,702 operations. The FAA’s reports are available for the public on its website.
Air traffic controllers will assist with daily weather operations once the contracted weather observers are gone, according to a statement released by the FAA.
Lynn Lunsford, a spokesman for the FAA, released the following statement: “The Federal Aviation Administration continues to provide a high level of weather information for pilots using Lubbock’s Preston Smith International Airport. Due to lower traffic levels, the facility no longer qualifies for contract weather observation. This service, which primarily consists of supplementing information from the (airport’s) sophisticated automated weather station, is now being performed by specially trained air traffic controllers. The level of safety will not be affected.”
The sophisticated automated weather station Lunsford reffered to an automated surface observation system. It has been at the airport since 1995, according to the National Weather Service.
Meteorologist Mark Conder said the ASOS is a standard piece of meteorological equipment, but a fair amount of sophisticated knowledge is required to interpret the data collected.
It is a metal mast about 30 feet in length that measures wind speed, wind direction, temperature, visibility, pressure and humidity. Conder said it also detects approaching weather systems.
The National Weather Service in Lubbock said it has not been officially notified by the FAA. However, the local branch was made aware of the situation by a supervisor at the local contract weather office, according to an email sent by Steve Cobb, an NWS science and operations officer.
In his email, Cobb said he was told a dozen other airports in the country will be losing their contract weather observers, as well.
Cobb said the NWS has not been told what the FAA’s future plans are for supplemental weather observations and the quality control of the ASOS.
“The Lubbock (contract weather observation) closing will mean that the onsite FAA personnel will likely become responsible for or have the option to supplement the automated observation with any operationally significant remarks,” Cobb wrote.
Cobb said during equipment outages or when unfavorable conditions are reported, the observers at the airport make observations and provide information relevant to air traffic operation.
Observers provide information the ASOS is not capable of perceiving, such as the presence and location of thunderstorms, lightning, tornadoes, hail and rainfall that hasn’t reached the ground, Cobb said.
“Since we are responsible for issuing forecasts for the Lubbock terminal, as well as local severe weather warnings, the accuracy and reliability of these hazardous weather elements as well as routine observations are very important to us,” Cobb wrote.
To comment on this story:
jennifer.loesch@morris.com
• 766-2159
leesha.faulkner@lubbockonline.com • 766-8706
QUESTION / ANSWER SECTION:
I'm an actual observer at the Lubbock Airport who's job this article discusses. I'm going to try to answer some of your questions.
1.) Yes, there are 8 National Weather Service certified weather observer employees at the station. Some are full time, others part-time, and even some as-needed employees for filling in at a moment's notice. We are required to man the station 24/7/365, so there is someone always on duty. Some of our observers have decades of experience and the rest have extensive meteorological knowledge. We all will be laid off on May 1 of this year if we cannot get this decision changed.
2.) Our info is used by every pilot who flies into and out of Lubbock International. This includes all the commercial airliners, shipping companies (FedEX, UPS, private overnight shippers), Military aircraft, airborne medical transporters, private pilots, and more. We report directly to air traffic control so they can keep the focus on aircraft flying into and out of the hub city without having to stop what they are doing and spend time trying to properly interpret what are sometimes highly variable conditions around the airport. In addition to aviation users, National Weather Service meteorologists also keep track of our observations for their forecasts and for making decisions when issuing severe weather warnings. The data we collect is also used by researchers all over the globe as we are the official climate station of record for Lubbock.
3.) When there isn't an outage or significant weather, we are constantly watching the skies and surrounding weather for changes (i.e. a thunderstorm that is just getting started, blowing dust that can disrupt aircraft, sudden changes in visibility, etc) and issuing required hourly updates. The automated station can lag significant weather reporting by up to 20 minutes, so we are ever vigilent. If something goes wrong, it is weather related, and we miss report it or don't report it at all, it is grounds for immediate termination so we never let our guard down.
I hope that answers some questions. I would encourage the reporter to follow up with us if they would like more answers to enhance this story.
