PIREPs- Anyone Help Others Out?

Do You File PIREPs ?

  • Yes, every cross-country/flight

    Votes: 10 16.4%

  • Yes, but very rarely

    Votes: 34 55.7%

  • No, but I use them if available

    Votes: 15 24.6%

  • No, I don't believe in PIREPs

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • What's a PIREP?

    Votes: 2 3.3%
  • Total voters
    61
  • Poll closed .
ARFlyer

ARFlyer

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ARFlyer
Took my private student on his first x/c flight today and as a bonus the weather was kinda crappy. So he really had to focus on dead reckoning. On our longer leg we had a quite spell in between checkpoints, so I decided to show him how to use Flight Watch and issue a PIREP. I told him it's a courtesy, a very rare one around here, that we as pilots can provide to other pilots.

I called up flight watch, issued my report, and asked about the inbound rain. Flight Watch was extremely happy at my report. The guy said it was the most complete and information filled one in a long time. He was really curious about the smoke I flew over and ask multiple questions about it, which was a first for me.

Here is the report from this morning:

MNE UA /OV ELD190034/TM 1638/FL045/TP M7/SK OVC150/WX FV10SM HZ-TOP030 FU/TA 16/TB NEG/RM FU HZ DRIFTING NE

Anyway do any of you file PIREPs, use PIREPs, or think they are a waste?
 
File them if weather is drastically different than WXBRIEF. Its fun to do on a longer, sortof tedious flight. And helps others.
 
If I'm IFR I'll usually give them tops and bases, turbulence, and icing.
 
Yep. If there are tops I can report, or if I'm flying in the southwest deserts -- I'll give turbulence reports either pro or con.

I like calling the RCOs, and man, those guys act like they were sleeping when I call :D
 
Yeah, if I'm bored I'll I've tops, bases, temp and ride.

If its way off the forecast I'll give a report.
 
If I'm talking to ATC (filed or FF) I try to report tops, layers, ice, and occasionally ride, an ELT signal, or something else of interest.

On a recent trip, ATC dropped me from 8 to 6, which turned out to be a drop from glass-smooth to light/moderate turbulence. I reported that and he asked me if I wanted to go back up for another few miles (approaching Bravo). I told him no, that I just wanted him to know for the next guy.

Talking to ATC, they already know most of the stuff to fill in the PIREP form blanks so you don't have to give it. They just need the specific info that you have. I am far to lazy to call Flight Watch and go through the whole litany.
 
schmookeeg said:
I like calling the RCOs, and man, those guys act like they were sleeping when I call :D
Click to expand...

I had one guy that wouldn't stop talking. When I told him I had to change freq he sounded kinda sad.

It's about a 50/50 shot out here if you'll get ahold of them. When we tried to call on our final leg today, so my student could try, they never picked up.
 
No excuse for PIREPs not to go out over that new fangled ADS-B thing. i should just be able to fill in a form, press a button and done. Switch freqs, call up a station and read it aloud? um...
 
Mistake Not... said:
No excuse for PIREPs not to go out over that new fangled ADS-B thing. i should just be able to fill in a form, press a button and done. Switch freqs, call up a station and read it aloud? um...
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Try AerovieReports on iOS. Beta was just launched. Requires a data connection in the air but will continue to retry sending while out of service.

No relation to the developer or the app. Just passing along info.
 
There should be an option between "every" and "rarely". I file them whenever there's something to report, but that's not every xc flight.
 
I'm like the others - I'll file one if I see/feel something contrary to what's forecast, or anytime I think someone might want to know. Kind of breaks up the monotony at cruise, and I really think those guys like having someone to talk to. :)

office-space_320.jpg
 
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One particular PIREP ****ed me off. Coming southbound over Sandberg ASOS it was my habit to always file a PIREP for the pass. I was on freq waiting my turn to file when I hear a Mooney say ice. Only a minute or two before he had passed me, same direction, same alt. Thanks pard.

As quick as I could I filed negative ice. I wasn't lying. Maybe he spilt his drink in his lap.:dunno:
 
Mainly to report cloud tops. Otherwise only if the weather is different than forecasted.
 
Mistake Not... said:
No excuse for PIREPs not to go out over that new fangled ADS-B thing. i should just be able to fill in a form, press a button and done. Switch freqs, call up a station and read it aloud? um...
Click to expand...
It's technically feasible in the sense that the transmitters and receivers exist and that it would not require a significant amount of bandwidth. But to transmit messages would require TSO'd user interfaces (input and display) that do not now exist and would require significant additional hardware in the transmitters and receivers themselves. You would effectively be recreating ACARS.

If you think the GA screaming about ADS-B adoption cost is loud now, try proposing that it include a near-ACARS capability.
 
I am both generous with and look for PIREPS on most X-Ctry flights and under certain local area conditions (e.g., visibility and layers report to tower controller in rain, etc.).

'Gimp
 
LDJones said:
There should be an option between "every" and "rarely". I file them whenever there's something to report, but that's not every xc flight.
Click to expand...

Ditto..

When on a 2-4 hour cross country, something isn't going to be quite as forecast. Since I always file a VFR flight plan on these trips, it is easy to do when closing the flight plan. The two biggies I try to take notes on are clouds (visibility, etc) and turbulence. I figure I would want to know if it is better or worse, so I start by trying to pay it forward.

But sometimes I get busy and distracted after parking the airplane...
 
Mistake Not... said:
No excuse for PIREPs not to go out over that new fangled ADS-B thing. i should just be able to fill in a form, press a button and done. Switch freqs, call up a station and read it aloud? um...
Click to expand...

Sounds like that's almost here, I got an email from Lockheed a while back:

Inflight PIREP submission is the most recent component of our Flight Services Data Link strategy, building on the cockpit to ground communications capability we put in place for inflight Adverse Condition Alerting Service (ACAS) alerts and Surveillance-Enhanced Search and Rescue (SE-SAR). Every pilot knows the value of PIREPs. Our PIREP submission infrastructure lets you submit PIREPs without contacting Flight Service via radio, and Urgent PIREPs are immediately uplinked to other pilots registered for ACAS and flying in the same area. The first two vendors integrating with our PIREP submission infrastructure will be announced at AirVenture Oshkosh, with more coming right behind.
Click to expand...
 
I mostly report adverse conditions. In the summer, this mostly means turbulence. I give quick ride reports on initial callup when I am IFR or VFRFF.

When winter rolls around I will report freezing levels and lack of ice. I do wish it was easier to submit a report. I'd do it more often. ACAS is not really a solution since it is not done in-flight unless you have some kind of satellite link capability. It would be great to be able to dump this stuff out via the ADS-B Out that we are all supposed to buy into soon.

Like it or not, looking up an FSS freq and dropping off freq to give a report creates a time cost/benefit analysis on the part of the pilot. For mundane stuff, many pilots decide the cost exceeds the benefit. So lower the time cost and we'd get more reports. I'd actually report SKY CLR and TB NEG if I could just poke it into my ipad or GTN or whatever.
 
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I only file PIREPS if there is something to say....weather including ceiling, turbulence, wind shear, bird migrations etc.
 
I used to file them for turbulence when crossing over the Rockies if there was no other warning about them.
 
I report temperature, winds aloft, turbulence, visibility, cloud layers/types/bases/tops, icing. I do this pretty much every long XC flight, with the first report after reaching cruise altitude, and then every 90 minutes or so after (or more frequently if conditions changed drastically). It breaks up the monotony on long trips, although I agree with others that the FSS folks can be a little too chatty, especially if I'm breaking off from an ATC frequency to file the report. I will admit that when I'm not solo I might be less likely to pirep. Otherwise it's just something I plan to do and keeps things interesting.
 
airdale said:
If you think the GA screaming about ADS-B adoption cost is loud now, try proposing that it include a near-ACARS capability.
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GA is screaming mad because its not optional. By the nature of the technology, the FAA is pushing the costs of the airspace management onto GA. That might be ok if there were a corresponding reduction in fuel taxes that then go to funding FAA's infrastructure, but that's not what's happening. Instead, they're pushing the costs of airspace management to the users while still keeping the tax funding. In all likelyhood, the infrastructure costs will go down in the next decade as all the high-maintenance facilitys/navaids get removed. If only there were a parallel decrease in fuel costs....


More on topic, I'll always give a PIREP if I break out on an approach below 1k' AGL in a piston airplane. I have the bandwidth to memorize a break-out altitude where a jet crew may not have the same capacity.
 
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