Baby, it’s cold outside

There’s cold—and then there’s northern Alaska cold.

The coming winter weather will bring colder temperatures to much of the United States. Perhaps your flight school requires that, below a certain temperature, aircraft engines be preheated before starting them. Before you grumble about the wait—or the work, if you participate in the process—consider pilots flying into barren, icy airports 150 miles or more north of the Arctic Circle. When the air temperature is minus 38 degrees Fahrenheit, shutting down the engines for as few as 15 minutes can chill them to the point of not starting. And if you don’t have an engine heater with you, you’ll have to wait even longer while one is flown in from somewhere else (there is no FBO). In such conditions bush pilots may drain the engine oil and remove the aircraft battery, keeping them warm indoors overnight to maximize their chances for a good start the next morning.

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