Right Seat – Flight Instructors Corner

Local Knowledge

When the winds are blowing out of the east or forecast to do so it could well mean a storm is approaching our area. This happens several times a year usually from the fall through the spring. In the winter time the path of the jet stream is further south and its winds are stronger as compared to the summer time when the jet stream is further to the north and its winds are weaker. This wintertime southern jet stream opens the door for storms in the Gulf of Alaska to track south and pass through our area. A storm’s low pressure system and associated cold front will usually track southward off shore from Point Conception. The counter-clockwise flow around the low will cause the surface winds at SBA to come from the east. This is why the precision ILS and LPV approaches here are to runway 07. If the winds are from the east or are forecast to be from the east be sure to check the Terminal Area Forecast and prognostic charts and/or talk to a FSS briefer and plan your flight accordingly. If a storm is approaching be sure to note the time of cold front passage. The rain may be gone but the winds behind the front are often quite gusty causing plenty of turbulence and can jeopardize a safe landing. Arrive at the wrong time after a storm passes and you may be flying to an alternate airport to make that safe landing.

Occasionally the winds at SBA will come from the north, usually around 350 degrees. These winds can be caused by high or low pressure systems with tightly packed isobars that are centered inland over the Great Basin. The jet stream can also take up a north to south track over our area and enhance the surface wind flow out of the north. Put the two together, a surface high or low in the right location and a prevailing north to south jet stream and the winds will really blow! When the atmospherics are correct these winds are labeled Santa Anna winds. The wind flow out of the north will create rotor waves off of the mountains causing turbulence that can be anywhere from light to moderate to severe to extreme. When this north wind makes it to the surface it can often gust to thirty or forty knots or higher. Always check the TAF for Santa Barbara before your flight. The winds can be benign throughout the day and then increase rapidly and turn gusty as sunset approaches when these conditions exist.

Also know how to decode a wind shear forecast such as:

WS 010/350 30G40KT.

This one reads ”Wind Shear, at 1000 feet, winds forecast to be from 350 degrees, velocity forecast to be 30 gusting to 40 knots. That does not sound like much fun to me. Not in a small plane anyway.

When winds such as these are forecast out of the north expect plenty of turbulence and be prepared to land on runway 33 if you or your airplane can not handle the crosswind on runway 25. A night landing on runway 33 can be very challenging due to the black hole effect, lack of visual approach slope aid and a go around, if needed, that heads straight for the mountains.

How can you obtain some local knowledge when flying to an unfamiliar airport? Start several days ahead by checking the ten day forecast on the Weather Channel website, www.weather.com. Note what the trend is and what the forecast is for the day of your flight. The day before or the day of your flight call the local FBO, airport manager or whoever sells the gas and ask them what the weather has been doing lately, what it is forecast to do and what is normal weather for that time of year. This is also a good time to ask about transportation, lodging and meals if you haven’t already figured that stuff out. If the local weather observation is worse than what’s forecast it is time to re-check the weather and re-evaluate your flight.

We all know it is important to check the weather before we fly. At Santa Barbara if the winds are anything other than what I would normally expect I know it is time to look further into the weather. It is important to be as flexible as possible with your flying plans and always leave yourself an out. A delay of a few hours or a day or choosing an alternate could mean the difference between a happy, safe flight or some bent metal and a damaged ego or worse. As the saying goes “It is better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air than in the air wishing you were on the ground.”   Fly safe!

John Mottarella, CFII