FAA Announces End of Hazardous Weather Advisory Program

In a final noticed issued by the Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the agency announced the end of the Hazardous Inflight Weather Advisory Service (HIWAS). The conclusion of this program aligns with an effort to modernize the administration.

The notice explains that the HIWAS system has been used since the early 1980s to allow pilots to access hazardous weather information while inflight without using the Flight Service specialist. Use of these Flight Service specialists has declined since the advent of the internet and other technologies.

“Staffing was 3,000+ specialists in more than 300 facilities during the early 1980s and now consists of three hub facilities. In 2018, radio contacts dropped to less than 900 per day from an average of 10,000 radio contacts per day,” the notice explains.

The FAA now notes that pilots have migrated to other means of obtaining inflight weather data.

“Multiple sources are available that provide access to weather and aeronautical information to pilots in the cockpit, often presented in a graphical format, making it easier to visualize what is going on along the route of flight. Pilots are no longer limited to only contacting a Flight Service specialist in order to adhere to 14 CFR 91.103, numerous options are available to them to help maintain awareness of hazardous weather advisories along their route of flight,” the notice furthers.

The FAA published a notice of the proposal on July 23, 2018 and received 27 comments on the proposed action.

The notice explains that 13 comments were supportive of or neutral on the proposal. Three comments referred to a portion of the program in Alaska which, according to the FAA, were dismissed because the program does not exist in Alaska. The remaining comments focused on concerns that existing technology may not be adequate enough for pilots to use to obtain weather information.

FAA noted that air traffic controllers will continue to advise pilots of hazardous weather that may impact operations within 150 nautical miles of their sector or area of jurisdiction.

A key stakeholder for the FAA, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) cited “safety concerns with the removal of this service because pilots may unexpectedly encounter hazardous weather and have no other means to obtain the information” in a number of comments. Survey’s from AOPA also indicated that a small segment of pilots continue to rely on HIWAS for adverse weather information while en route.

The FAA satisfied these concerns by noting, “The FAA instituted FIS-B as a replacement for this legacy system that provides a range of aeronautical information products and often in a graphical format, which is not available via HIWAS. For pilots who choose not to equip their aircraft with this new technology… Flight Service Specialist is still available over a radio outlet.”

The FAA plans to discontinue the program officially on January 8, 2020.