“VIGOROUS PACIFIC FRONTAL SYSTEM APPROACHES”

The discussion this morning put out by the National Weather Service begins with the above title. This afternoon we are going to see our first real winter style system move onshore. NWS is talking about it being inland by 7PM. Watch for a few inches of rain to fall along the coast and over the Olympics!

BYE TWEB

At 5PM today the National Weather Service is getting rid of the TWEB forecast. They had discussed the possibility of ending the TWEB earlier this year. May 20th was the final day for the public to speak out against their removal and less than 1% of the users responded. So goodbye to the TWEB. I found them to be most useful for a forecast between the western side of the Cascades and the eastern side. Since Stampede Pass is the only weather reporting we have over the mountains they were quite helpful. If you didn’t know… a TWEB forecast is a specific route forecast such as Seattle to Ellensburg. Now we will just have to rely on the area forecast which I just find to be entirely WAY to broad of a forecast. Oh well.

THE ONLY GOOD PLACE FOR ICE IS IN A CUP

We had a pretty good cold front move through the area today, lowering temperatures through out Washington and Oregon. For most of the day the freezing level sat at about 4500’ on the west side of the Cascades and 5500’ for the east side. Quite a few pilots reported light to moderate icing as well. So, in light of all this bad news of icing I thought I would share a little known local procedure called deviation vectors for ice. This is a procedure that Seattle set up to help pilots get across the mountains or to descend down below the freezing level to attain minimal ice. When you file your flight plan and you suspect conditions are right for icing put either “deviation vectors for ice” or “an uninterrupted descent to ____ feet for ice.” Deviation vectors for ice allows you to climb to an altitude above the freezing level over the lower elevation terrain. If you do pick up too much ice you can safely descend to a lower altitude and a warmer temperature. An uninterrupted descent to a certain altitude (one below the freezing level) keeps you from being assigned an altitude on descent that could put you into or near the freezing level. These are just two more tools to use in the battle against ice in western Washington.

HERE WE COME WINTER

Leafs are falling off of trees, temperatures are declining and rain is in abundance. This means only one thing… WINTER! Or winter :( anyways, with winter comes many airport closures through out Washington. So I have made a list of all the seasonal airports I could find.

BANDARA STATE (4W0) OCT 1ST- JUNE 1ST
CLAYTON (C72) WINTER
CLE ELUM (S93) NOV-APR
DE VERE (2W1) WINTER
COLFAX (00W) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
DARRINGTON (1S2) WHEN SNOW IS ON RUNWAY
EASTON STATE (ESW) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
GREENWATER (21W) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
KAHLOTUS (W09) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
KENT (S36) WHEN SNOW IS ON RUNWAY
LAURIER (69S) OCT 1ST- JUNE 1ST
LEAVENWORTH (27W) OCT 1ST- JUNE 1ST
LESTER STATE (15S) CLOSED INDEFINITELY
MAZAMA (W12) NOV 1ST - APR 1ST
METALINE FALLS (09S) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
RIMROCK (4S6) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
RITZVILLE (33S) WHEN SNOW ON RUNWAY
SKYKOMISH STATE (S88) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
STARBUCK (16W) OCT 1ST - JUNE 1ST
STEHEKIN STATE (6S9) OCT-JUNE

WELCOME TO MY BLOG

I am starting a new website that I have titled “Fly Washington State.” My goal of the website is to bring pilots all over Washington state together. The website will have a forum, information on airports with a local twist. The airports will have information that you can not find on the many website out there that give you what is in an AFD. For example, phone numbers, webcams and that kind of stuff. Also the website will be full of local procedures, upcoming events and anything else I can find that a pilot flying in Washington state would like to know. Finally, I have decided to start up a blog that I can quickly post information to that I come across and just general stuff that I can not find a home for on the website. The website is not yet up. I have been working on it for the past year or so and it is quickly coming to a point were I can put it online. I hope everyone enjoys!