Largest airports get 30-hour TAFs

Just when you were getting comfortable with the coding of terminal area forecasts (TAFs), there is new date and time coding coming for extended 30-hour forecasts.

The extended forecasts will be provided for 32 of the nation’s largest airports starting Nov. 5.

To comply with international standards, the forecasts for those cities will change from 24-hour predictions to 30-hour predictions, requiring a new method to show when part of the forecast falls on the following day.

It’s currently the top news on the government’s Aviation Weather Center on the Internet. There is training available to help you read the new coding. The site also contains the background behind the decision and a list of the cities involved.