Safety Spotlight

Safety Hot Spot: Aircraft Icing

Of all the dangers that weather can pose to aircraft, icing is arguably the most treacherous. Lurking unseen in innocent-looking clouds, ice can destroy lift, raise stall speeds and cause drag to skyrocket. Even aircraft on the ground are at risk: A seemingly insignificant layer of frost, snow or ice can so effectively degrade a wing's aerodynamic integrity that takeoff and climb become hazardous, or impossible. So serious is the danger that in December 2004 the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued a nationwide alert to pilots.

Has it been a while since you've thought about icing? Does your winter preflight include a careful examination of wing and tail surfaces? Get back up to speed with the resources in this Safety Hot Spot.


	Here's a review of what you need to know — and bring — before you go.
	Aircraft Icing Safety Checkup Kneeboard format (PDF file — 31KB) \| HTML format


Articles and other online resources from AOPA, the AOPA Air Safety Foundation, and the FAA to increase your knowledge about icing.

Safety Advisor: Aircraft Icing (PDF file — 354KB) Safety Advisor: Aircraft Deicing and Anti-Icing Equipment (PDF file — 219KB) Safety Brief: Cold Facts — Wing Contamination (PDF file — 272KB) Safety Brief: Cold Facts: Braking Action Reports (PDF file — 293KB) AOPA Pilot and Flight Training articles: Snow Time Ice on the Approach Ice Folklore The Weather Never Sleeps: Baby, It's Cold Outside Recurrent Training: Ice, Snow, and Frost Accident reports featured in AOPA ePilot: Ice is never nice De-ice your wings Pilot Weather Stories: Aircraft Icing	Videos Wing Contamination (00:34) Preflight Briefing (01:21) In-Flight Icing Re-creation (02:05) Video clips from Icing for General Aviation Pilots, courtesy of the Icing Branch at NASA Glenn Research Center. Online Course SkySpotter General Aviation Accident Data from the ASF Accident Database All icing accidents , including induction, structural, and ground accumulation Induction Icing Accidents Structural Icing Accidents Ground Accumulation Accidents