Weather Operations at Western US Airports Rick Curtis Chief Meteorologist Southwest Airlines

SWA Facts and Figures SWA - Over 3300 daily flights from 97 airports AirTran – Over 700 daily flights from 70 airports 694 Boeing 737 aircraft (300’s, 500’s, 700’s) Average flight length is 694 miles - shortest: RSW-MCO, 133 miles - longest: PVD-LAS, 2,363 miles Southwest consumed 1.9 billion gallons of jet fuel in 2012 Offers the most domestic flights of any airline

Top 10 SWA Airports CityDaily Departures Number of Gates Nonstop Cities Served Year Established MDW LAS BWI PHX DEN HOU DAL LAX OAK STL

SWA Weather Rely solely on NWS TAFs for operational decisions. Weather information is routinely used by: Dispatch, Pilots, Maintenance, Operations, Reservations, Crew Scheduling and Executive Office. Intranet Weather System available to all SWA employees.

Strategic Planning Major Weather Events - Snow Storms/Hurricanes – Employees Airport staffing levels Temporary transfer from other SWA cities Local Curfews – Passengers Re- accommodation Demand Infrastructure (roads, power, curfews) – Airport operations planning coordination – Determine station “close” time – After storm evaluate conditions, employee situation, infrastructure (bridges/tram, roads, NAVAIDs etc.) – Plan Recovery – Restore Operations

Tactical Planning Thunderstorms/Snow Storms/Ice Pellets/Fog – Extra contingency fuel – Required alternates – Flight Delays – Suspended Ramp Operations – “Code Red” – Diversions – Flight Cancellations

Southwest Airport Operations

SWA Southwestern US Flight Activity

MDCRs Meteorological Data Communications and Receive System. SWA currently has 50 aircraft reporting wind and temperature data during the climb phase of flight. SWA is looking to expand our participation in this program, perhaps expanding fleet wide.

Water Vapor Sensing System (WVSS) Facts ARINC contracted with the NWS for this program. SWA and UPS are both subcontractors to ARINC to install water vapor sensors on our aircraft. SWA currently has WVSS reporting on: – 31 of our -300s. – 50 of our -700s, with 6 more installations expected by the end of June 2013, totaling 56. – Combined, SWA will have 81 WVSS aircraft by the end of June UPS has 24 aircraft currently reporting WVSS data. SWA/UPS both optimal route schedules for WVSS data gathering.

Snapshot of WVSS Reporting Aircraft a Year Ago July 16-17, 2012

Recent Snapshot of WVSS Reporting Aircraft Around 30,500 more observations than last year

WVSS Activity across the Western U.S. 24 hours June 12-13, 2013

Sounding Example with WVSS Data

Water Vapor Sensor

SEB Heated Hoses Water Vapor Sensor View from Inside Aircraft

Water Vapor Plans Currently looking into obtaining an STC for the -800’s – We are working with ARINC, SpectraSensors, and the NWS – With WVSS installations on SWA -800’s, we will have the capability to expand WVSS data to the Caribbean, Mexico, Hawaii, etc.

Items for Discussion TAF forecasts at or below minimums. AFD – aviation discussion – confidence levels, breaking out commercial airports from GA airports. ASOS issues? Crosswind issues Airport Weather Warnings?

From everyone at Southwest Airlines… Thanks for all that you do to help us better serve you!