International Aviation Weather Operations at the World Area Forecast Centers

In order to meet the need for aviation weather information worldwide, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) developed requirements for the operation of two World Area Forecast Centers (WAFCs), one operated by the National Weather Service (WAFC Washington) and one by the UK Met Office (WAFC London). Along with the NWS National Centers for Environmental Prediction Central Operations, the NWS Aviation Weather Center (AWC) serves as , on behalf of the Federal Aviation Administration, the US aviation meteorological authority.

The AWC operates the WAFC functions and coordinates with the FAA, the UK Met Office, ICAO, and dozens of other international collaborators to provide the best possible information of weather hazards. This allows for safe and efficient operations beyond just the domestic National Airspace System. Most recently the branch was led by Matt Strahan, who spearheaded several research and operations projects to deliver continuous improvements to products and services including harmonized US-UK World Area Forecast System (WAFS) gridded forecasts, and creation of an application programming interface to revolutionize the access to ever more complex datasets. This presentation will provide an overview of AWC international operations, WAFC products and services, and the upcoming changes to the WAFS.