"(FAA) FSS and AWOS"
Yeh...they were talking about this during
my last years in the biz. The only station I
flew into back then that used AWOS full time was Presque Isle, ME (PQI). It
worked
pretty good. Of course, it was backed up by
a military approach control at the time but
he knew even (currently) less than the
AWOS!! SYR also had a part-time AWOS
as well as they shut down at 2300 back
then. Think they're probably back to full-
time ops today considering current UPS/FedEx and other air freight ops. to
upper NY State.
Doppler Wx Radar equipped FSS is a boon
to general aviation. I hate to see any of these close. The "quarter-share"
operations
as well as the airlines have their own dispatch services in this regard but the
average general aviation pilot is gonna get
short-changed in terms of the longer range
wx dynamic (especially thunderstorm change/development) unless he brings along
his PC.
It's funny, but the accident ratio doesn't
seem to change much with all this automation. Just different ways to get into
the same sorta trouble it seems in terms of
keeping the shiney side up! :)
And today's FAA running
things is pretty much like Johnson &
MacNamara running the Vietnam war from
their offices in DCA. Ever since de-regulation, there have been some horrendous
decisional errors affecting
operations....as in the decision to eliminate
the speedbrake/spoiler auto-retract feature on "go-around" powerup
fr'instance. Of course, considering loss of
life they've had second thoughts on this
(Duh....HELLO!!).
Then we have the infamous (autopilot)
"fly attitude" in thunderstorm-like turbulence. Dumbest thing I ever heard
of....good way to "break" an airplane under some circumstances, "soft" mode or
not.
No thank you..........I'll use my hands
and limit loads by gently "going
with the flow" while providing minor-rate
"corrections" until we develop computers
that can think cognitively. Not supposed to
"be there" anyway but every now and then...and I like my airframe unbent and
"factory integrity" as it very well could
come apart "downline" is circumstances
of lesser load than it was originally designed for, otherwise.
Cap'n Bob
Basic Frog
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