What is a TAF in aviation?

The Terminal Area Forecast ( TAF ) is the official FAA forecast of aviation activity for U.S. airports. It contains active airports in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems ( NPIAS ) including FAA-towered airports, Federal contract-towered airports, non-federal towered airports, and non-towered airports.

What is the difference between MOS and TAF?

MOS transforms the model data into weather elements that the model does not directly forecast. While TAFs provide the official forecast for 666 airports throughout the US and its territories, MOS provides weather guidance for over 2100 airports including some military air bases.

What are the four categories of aviation weather?

There are four types of inflight aviation weather advisories: the SIGMET, the Convective SIGMET, the AIRMET (text or graphical product), and the Center Weather Advisory (CWA).

What is TAF weather data?

TAF is the international standard code format for terminal forecasts issued for airports. The acronym translates to Terminal Aerodrome Forecast , and is analogous to the terminal forecast (FT) coding format currently used in the US.

Is TAF more accurate than MOS?

Pilots should use MOS in a similar way they may use a TAF keeping in mind that TAFs are constructed by highly trained meteorologists and will ordinarily be more accurate than a MOS forecast for the same airport.

How long does TAF last?

24-hour
New TAF Format Routine TAFs are valid for a 24-hour period and issued four times daily: 00Z, 06Z, 12Z, and 18Z, and are amended (updated) as conditions require.

Are METARs forecasts?

METAR is a format for reporting weather information. A METAR weather report is predominantly used by aircraft pilots, and by meteorologists, who use aggregated METAR information to assist in weather forecasting. Raw METAR is the most common format in the world for the transmission of observational weather data.

When are TAFs issued?

TAFs are issued every six hours for major civil airfields: 0000, 0600, 1200 and 1800 UTC, and generally apply to a 24- or 30-hour period, and an area within approximately five statute miles (8.0 km) (or 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) in Canada) from the center of an airport runway complex.

What is aviation meteorology?

Aviation meteorology is the study of weather from the unique perspective of the aviation industry. This subject began during the era of hot-air balloons and gliders.

What is Aviation Weather Center?

The Aviation Weather Center (AWC), located in Kansas City, Missouri, is a central aviation support facility operated by the National Weather Service, which issues two primary products: