Safety Through Information Getting the information you need to fly safely even when youre in new territory By Grant McHerron

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 2 Youve all heard these, right? Praemonitus, praemunitus (Fore-warned is Forearmed) Be prepared Baden-Powell & the Boy Scouts Knowledge is Power Sir Francis Bacon Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance. Confucius No Campaign plan survives first contact with the enemy Carl von Clausewitz Planning is everything, the plan is nothing Dwight Eisenhower

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 3 Pilots Have Known This For Almost 100 Years "The success or otherwise of the airway is in the hands of the people who do the work – the pilots. In their hands rests everything. No man can be born a fully- trained pilot; no pilot can ever be fully trained. All pilots should ever be learning, ever striving to increase their own efficiency. Efficiency begets confidence, and thus safety. So aim at being safe" Captain Travis W. Shortridge "Blind & Bad Weather Flying" Slipstream Magazine, 1930 (pilot of the ill-fated Southern Cloud)

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 4 Legally, you must be prepared! CAO CAR 233 CAR 239 The pilot in command (that's you) has to: Plan the flight for the route to be followed and any aerodromes to be used (and any alternates), covering: o Current weather reports & forecasts o Airways facilities available & their conditions o Conditions of any aerodromes & their suitability to your aircraft o Air Traffic Control rules & procedures pertaining to the flight Carry (with easy access to) the information you need during the flight, including: o Maps covering the proposed area of operation showing aerodromes, controlled airspace, prohibited, restricted and danger areas along the likely flight path o Any other information & instructions required

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 5 Today may not be like Yesterday You must have current information available to you You need this information in your home area as well as when you go to a new area Never assume you know what's going on because you flew here yesterday - always look for what's changed, new info, etc

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 6 What's stopping you? "Who's got the time? The weather is right now!" "I don't need the latest maps - my parts don't really change." "I just fly where I know and don't go elsewhere." "It's too hard to stay up to date." "It's not like I'm flying at an airport and can just drop by the pilot's shop." "We're recreational & fly under their radar."

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 7 Sources of Knowledge Government Sources o ERSA, AIP, VFR Guide o NOTAMs o Maps VNC, VTC, ERC Low,TAC, PCA Geoscience,LIC NSW, VICMAP, etc BoM o TAFs, METARS, etc ABF o Pilot Training Manual, Operations Manual o Website

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 8 Save the Trees! ERSA, AIP, etc: CASR, CAR, CAO, etc: Briefing Services: TAFs, METARs & NOTAMs: ABF: Maps: (free!)

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 9 It's all Geek to me! How to read a TAF AIP GEN Decoding NOTAMs Understanding NOTAMs - Part 1 & Part 2 o /CurrentTopic.html o /CurrentTopic.html VFR Guide: Airspace Regulations Summary

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 10 Flying Somewhere New? Look for charts (aviation & topographical) - start assessing airspace boundaires, what airports/airstrips/ALAs are in the area, what Area Forecast zone is it in Go to the ABF site and start checking for PZs, SZs & Hazards Use the ABF member directory to find people in the area and CALL THEM to learn which land holders can be relied on for launch/landing plus any transient or seasonal problems that may not be on the ABF site (crops being sown/harvested, livestock, etc) Check ERSA entries for all airports in the area Start building up a mental image of the 3D picture of the space you'll be flying in (landscape, boundaries, hazards, etc) and do some "what if" thinking of how you'd fly for various wind conditions - what you'd watch out for, etc. Mark up your maps & reference cards (cheat sheets) with information so it's easy to find all you need when you're in the air

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 11 A Few Days Before Watch the weather forecasts, synoptic charts & trends Check for NOTAMs Check ABF site again and give balloonists with local knowledge a call

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 12 Let's go fly near Mildura Check out the ABF site for info about the area Look at the Planning Chart of Australia - find it's in area 30 & on WAC 3458 Get the maps for the area (WAC, ERC LOW #2, VICMAP topographicals - Meringur & Merrinee) Look up Mildura in the ERSA to get code (YMIA), frequencies & notes Look up AirServices web site for TAF/METAR and NOTAM info Start reading/viewing & thinking Get ABF member directory and start finding people in Mildura to call

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 13 Here's a TAF/METAR MILDURA (YMIA) RAIM GPS RAIM PREDICTION YMIA TSO-C129 (AND EQUIVALENT) FAULT DETECTION NO GPS RAIM FD OUTAGES FOR NPA TSO-C146A (AND EQUIVALENT) FAULT DETECTION NO GPS RAIM FD OUTAGES FOR NPA FAULT DETECTION AND EXCLUSION TIL TIL TIL TIL TIL TIL TIL TIL TIL GPS RAIM FDE UNAVBL FOR NPA METAR METAR YMIA Z 27007KT CAVOK 06/05 Q1012 RMK RF00.0/009.4 TAF TAF AMD YMIA Z 1518/ KT 9999 FEW035 SCT060 FM G30KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN FEW035 BKN045 FM KT 9999 SCT045 RMK FM MOD TURB BLW 5000FT TILL T Q

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 14 Here's some NOTAMS MILDURA (YMIA) C0048/09 RWY 18/36 DECLARED DISTANCE CHANGES RWY ASDA FROM TO PERM C0022/10 RWY DECLARED DIST AND GRADIENT CHANGES: RWY TODA (2.18) (1.62) RWY 09/27 TRANSITION SFC INFRINGED (2.36) (2.39) SUPPLEMENTARY TKOF DIST: RWY (1.6) 1912(1.9) RWY (1.6) RWY (1.6) 1127(1.9) 1178(2.2) RWY (1.6) 1107(1.9) 1168(2.2 FROM TO PERM C0024/10 NDB MIA FREQ 272 PILOT MONITORED FROM TO EST

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 15 Be Willing to help Provide information to the ABF so the website can be updated o PZs, SZs, hazards, etc o Help make that section of the site something of benefit to all of us Be available for calls from other balloonatics who are going to fly in your area Online forums (downwind.com.au? Aunty Monkey?) Social experiences with other pilots ("Hangar flying")

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 16 It's all about Airmanship Somehow airmanship, which is not just flying, but is everything flying means, is a very neglected subject … If only young pilots would forget that a joy stick is in many ways only a secondary consideration, that circuits and landings do not make a pilot, that they never will learn all that the air can teach them, and that advice from old hands should never be disregarded – well, lots of young pilots would still be pilots! Captain Travis W. Shortridge "Blind & Bad Weather Flying" Slipstream Magazine, 1930 (pilot of the ill-fated Southern Cloud)

Safety Through Information presentation by Grant McHerron 17 Thanks for making it to the end Grant McHerron