AOPA Weather has added full support for the Apple iPad.
The association’s weather application, a long-time member benefit, gives pilots access to graphical and textual weather information. The iPad interface is almost identical to the desktop version to make it easier to use the same application from multiple devices. Pilots can use the device’s touch screen to drag the chart and scroll METARs, TAFs, and area forecasts. The application works best when holding the iPad in landscape mode, although it will also work in portrait.
Since its launch, AOPA Weather has grown to become the most popular page on AOPA Online, next to the AOPA home page. In the past year, the digital resources team has been making updates to the display of information on the application to take advantage of Web 2.0 capabilities like eliminating page reloads and aggregating more data and tools from outside sources. Recently added features include translated METARs and TAFs from the Aviation Digital Data Service (ADDS), auto-refreshing data every few minutes, and integration with the AOPA Internet Flight Planner to get weather briefings from DTC DUAT and CSC DUATS. The goal is to build a best-of-breed set of capabilities for helping pilots make a go/no-go decision on their flights.
As more tablet devices are introduced in the coming months, the AOPA Weather team will work to support them. The application does not currently run on small-screen mobile devices such as the iPhone, iPod touch, or Android smartphones.
Find out more about the newest version of AOPA Weather.
