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CAA NZ CPL Meteorology study materials
CAA NZ CPL Meteorology study resources

CAA NZ CPL Meteorology: Meteorology Regulation (CAA NZ CPL Meteorology)

CAA NZ CPL Meteorology · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

All guide sections

Meteorology Regulation (CAA NZ CPL Meteorology)

Meteorology regulation

This domain tests the rules and responsibilities behind the weather products: who provides them, what the pilot and operator must do with them, and where the legal minima come from.

Framework

  • The Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand administers the Civil Aviation Act and the Civil Aviation Rules. Meteorological standards follow ICAO Annex 3, with NZ differences and procedures published in AIP New Zealand.
  • MetService is the designated meteorological service provider for New Zealand aviation and issues METAR/SPECI, TAF, ARFOR/GRAFOR, SIGMET and AIRMET.
  • Part 91 requires the pilot in command to obtain and use adequate weather information and to ensure the flight can be conducted safely under the applicable VFR or IFR minima. Parts 121 and 125 place additional meteorological requirements on air transport operators through their exposition.
  • Operator minima, alternate requirements and reduced-visibility procedures are not invented by the pilot; they come from the rule set and the operator's approved exposition.

Worked example

A Part 91 VFR pilot plans a cross-country. The route forecast shows a frontal band, the destination TAF has TEMPO 0514/0518 3000 SHRA BKN012, and the destination VFR minimum is 5,000 m and 1,500 ft cloud. Reason: the TEMPO conditions are below the VFR minimum. The pilot must not treat the prevailing part of the TAF as sufficient; the plan needs a later ETA, a different route, or a delay, and the decision must be recorded in the weather briefing.

Traps

Assuming a TAF is a legal guarantee; using company or personal minima that are lower than the rule; forgetting that the exposition can be more restrictive; and confusing "known icing" with "forecast icing" when deciding whether a flight may proceed.