Welcome to the AVSIM Online!

Aviation Weather Center

Aviation Simulation's Primary Weather Source

[Editor's Note: The Aviation Weather Center is proud to be a Charter Member of the new AVSIM Educational Resource. To make sure we meet the standards of the resource and the other fine Charter Members, the Aviation Weather Center will soon undergo a complete overhaul. Look for a similar format but a much wider depth of knowledge. For each area covered, we will offer a variety of educational material, from the basic to the highly technical, along with links to data sites related to that area covering the entire globe. Obviously, this will not be an overnight project. I estimate it will take about a year to fully complete. But there will be a priority on getting at least the Basic information and Global data links for each of the areas up as quickly as possible. Then the more detailed information will be filled in. Also there will be a concentration on the core aviation information, before expanding out to other related weather topics. Look for the first changes to show up in the next week or so and I hope to have the first topic, in the new format, up within about 10 days to give you an idea of what is to come. Your understanding during this upgrade is appreciated. I also am taking requests. If there is something you would like to see in the Aviation Weather Center, be it a new topic, a favorite link or whatever, drop me a note and I will see what can be done to accommodate. Just send the email to chuck@avsim.com.]

"While programs allowing simulator pilots to use actual weather conditions have been around for years, the use of real-time weather has only come into its own with the release of Microsoft's Flight Simulator 2000 and Terminal Reality's Fly! For the first time, the use of actual weather conditions is expected to be the norm, not the exception.

Some of the high quality third-party shareware programs now allow for continuous updating of weather conditions as an aircraft crosses the country or the globe. But like most good things in life, these new capabilities come at a cost. Simulation pilots now have to be well versed in weather and how it effects aircraft."

Those are the opening paragraphs of the AVSIM Online! Aviation Simulation Weather tutorials and accompanying AvWxDataJump for the latest weather conditions. There are over a dozen tutorials which not only show you where to find weather data on the Internet, but also guide you through the interpretation and use of that data. To head to the Tutorials, just click on the button below.

But what if you have already worked through all of the tutorials and feel like you have a firm grasp of the basics of aviation simulation meteorology? Just make the DataJump directly to a page filled with shortcuts to all the weather links for your specific region.

Currently, the only country covered is the United States. I had to start somewhere. Next, I plan to bring the Caribbean and Canada online since I have the majority of those links. After that, it is pretty much up to you. With the proper links, I could easily bring on a country or region each month. The key is access to public domain sites with real-time weather information. If you have those links, or just some leads on the links, feel free to drop Chuck Boudreaux a note, including a list of the links or information you have found so far. Then all you have to do is select your country or region from the drop-down list below and hit the Go button.

(For Flight Simulation Use Only)