The most critical impact of adverse C&V is on the general aviation (GA) pilot, particularly during in-route flight where unexpected encounters with reduced ceiling and visibility conditions are most likely. In these situations, the GA pilot may face serious risk of disorientation, loss of control, and controlled flight into obstructed terrain. Approximately 168 pilots, crew and passengers are killed each year as a result of GA accidents in which adverse C&V conditions were a contributing factor. Improved national-scale analyses and forecasts of ceiling and visibility and new tools to present this information to pilots, weather briefing staff and others are key to improving the C&V safety record. Toward this end, RAP leads the FAA National Ceiling and Visibility (NCV) product development team, comprised of researchers from RAP, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, the Naval Research Laboratory at Monterey (NRL), NOAA’s Forecast Systems Laboratory, the University of Quebec at Montreal, and NOAA’s Aviation Weather Center.

Research Lead: Paul Herzegh and Wes Wilson