Taking A Closer Look At Applying Temp Comp

Within the Notice to Airman Publication (NTAP) Part 4, Graphic Notices Section 1, General – Cold Temperature Restricted Airports, is a list of updated airports that are affected when cold temperatures influence the terrain clearance for instrument approach procedures.

Pilots are instructed to apply a cold temperature error correction (Temp Comp) when the reported airport temperature is at or below the listed temperature on the instrument chart. How this Temp Comp is applied is a choice that the flight crew must make before beginning the approach. Flight crews have two choices.

Option one is for the flight crew to apply the Temp Comp correction to the specific segments of the instrument approach procedure (IAP) that is listed within the NTAP airport list. Flight crews must review the most current list prior to flying it.

Option two is for the flight crew to apply the All Segments Method. This simplifies the procedure because the Temp Comp correction is applied to all altitudes from the initial approach fix (IAF) through the missed approach final holding altitude. This is a good option if your avionics has an automated Temp Comp feature. Flight crews wishing to use the All Segments Method are not required to review the NTAP airport list for the affected segments.

Many new winter operation standards set by the FAA become effective on October 1, 2016. Our blog post in July 2016 highlighted several of these new winter operation topics. Contact Advanced Aircrew Academy to sign up for the current Winter Operations / Surface Contamination eLearning module. The updated module also includes information on the new Runway Condition Assessment Matrix (RCAM) Runway Condition Codes (RwyCC) that will be used starting October 1, 2016.