The Met Office is pleased to support this year's Gordon Bennett race. It is providing the race organisers with access to its aviation weather service, ClearFlight, and producing trajectory guidance to help route the competitors through UK airspace in the early stages of the race.
The Met Office offers a range of services to the ballooning community to help you get the most from the weather. Based in Exeter, the Met Office is designated by the CAA as the sole provider of UK met information.
Ballooning information is available via our general aviation briefing service (http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/aviation/ga.html) and any specific forecast should be used in conjunction with AIRMET or F214 and F215 which are also available on the site.
Regional Ballooning Forecast
Ballooning forecasts are available for south-east, south-west, central and northern regions twice a day
Wind and Temperature Profiles
Also available free of charge is a wind and temperature profile for a number of locations twice a day throughout the UK.
For more detailed ballooning forecasts specific to anywhere in the UK contact our Customer Centre (available for a small fee).
Talk to a Forecaster
Talk to a Forecaster is a three-minute weather briefing given by one of our aviation forecasters. It is designed to give clarification for specific UK locations up to 5-days ahead. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Credits are available singly, by calling the customer centre on 0870 900 0100 (or 01392 885680) at £17 each. Alternatively discounts are available for bulk purchases via credit card, reducing calls to £14 each if purchasing 50 calls.
Bespoke Telephone Consultancy
If you require more in-depth forecasts specific to your operation, we also offer a bespoke consultancy service. This give pilots the opportunity to discuss weather situations with an aviation forecaster in depth.
The service is an annual subscription with the cost based on the desired number
and duration of calls.
Both telephone services can be set to your preferred flying locations and accessed by a unique pin number, which will fast track you direct to the forecaster. Calls are charged at landline national rate, calls from mobiles may vary.
Met for Balloonists Training
Met for Balloonists has been developed with specialists Cameron Balloons to broaden and enhance the balloonist’s knowledge of aviation weather. The course also includes a tour of our operations centre.
The two day course is aimed at balloonists with all levels of competency and an interest in meteorology. It will also help preparation for the Meteorological elements of the PPL(B) and CPL(B) examinations.
Courses are run at our college in Exeter. Alternatively for groups of 10 or more we can come to a location to suit your group.
Finally, don't forget that we can also present at club meetings or arrange a tour of the Met Office.
If you would like further information on any of the services or training available at the Met Office or feedback any comments, please contact the aviation team on 0870 900 0100 or email us at aviation@metoffice.gov.uk