Cell Phone vs XM\WX and ADS-B\WX

[Piloto]

I dropped my XM subscription about six months ago due to no coverage in the Caribbean and part of the Bahamas. Another reason was that most of my flight decisions takes place before heading to the airport, thus XM or ADS-B don't help you on that. I have been using my cell phone (Samsung S3/ATT) for preflight planning and in-flight (with some success). On the ground and up to 5,000ft AGL it works very well in the US. Above 6,000ft the cell connection is not constant due to the cell network mutual interference. At 10,000 I get sporadic connections of few minutes. I can download satellite and radar images from websites that provide quick downloading like those from aviationweather.gov. Just download single images but no loops, otherwise it get stuck. Does anyone has any tricks or experience that want to share?

José I

 

[gismo]

I dropped my XM subscription about six months ago due to no coverage in the Caribbean and part of the Bahamas. Another reason was that most of my flight decisions takes place before heading to the airport, thus XM or ADS-B don't help you on that. I have been using my cell phone (Samsung S3/ATT) for preflight planning and in-flight (with some success). On the ground and up to 5,000ft AGL it works very well in the US. Above 6,000ft the cell connection is not constant due to the cell network mutual interference. At 10,000 I get sporadic connections of few minutes. I can download satellite and radar images from websites that provide quick downloading like those from aviationweather.gov. Just download single images but no loops, otherwise it get stuck. Does anyone has any tricks or experience that want to share?

José I

With ATT cellular I rarely have any reception above about 2000 AGL but YRMV. I do think your notion that preflight wx is more important than inflight wx is pretty much completely backwards. With the exception of avoiding departures into VFR-IMC, TRW, or serious icing wx decisions on the ground are about convenience (i.e. avoiding flights that are likely to require returning home or landing somewhere short of the intended destination) while inflight wx is more about safety. This may be more true for flight in IMC than VMC where you can often see the adverse weather well enough to avoid it but even a VFR pilot can run out of options wx wise if they don't stay on top of developing adverse conditions affecting their flight.

 

[Piloto]

With ATT cellular I rarely have any reception above about 2000 AGL but YRMV. I do think your notion that preflight wx is more important than inflight wx is pretty much completely backwards. With the exception of avoiding departures into VFR-IMC, TRW, or serious icing wx decisions on the ground are about convenience (i.e. avoiding flights that are likely to require returning home or landing somewhere short of the intended destination) while inflight wx is more about safety. This may be more true for flight in IMC than VMC where you can often see the adverse weather well enough to avoid it but even a VFR pilot can run out of options wx wise if they don't stay on top of developing adverse conditions affecting their flight.

I had the same problem with my previous iPhone 4 3G cellphone. But since I switched to the Samsung S3 LTE 4G I can connect more often than previously. Maybe it has to do with the new LTE 4G technology.

Maybe I am from the old school but for me checking weather before getting in the plane is more important than in-flight surprises. After all it helped Charles Lindbergh which had no in-flight weather. I had done over 50 oceanic crossings and about half a dozen needed to be delayed or rerouted due to forecasted wx conditions. Those airlines cancellations/delay that you see on the billboard are mostly due to forecast weather at the time of landing. So you do not end up putting your passengers on a bus at the alternate airport. This is why checking weather before departure is veeery important.

True that in-flight weather is important. And that is one reason that I rely on my Stormscope and my Samsung phone. But when you are flying outside the US there is no XM or ADS-B to rely on, just your cell phone and HF (VOLMET reports).

José

 

[flyingcheesehead]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: If you need in-flight weather, relying on any cellular device is dangerous. You don't know when it'll work, and IME getting weather data will fail the majority of the time at most altitudes. Different altitudes work better than others in different places, so rules of thumb regarding altitude alone aren't likely to work.

If you're in the US, XM or ADS-B is the way to go, depending on your individual situation (where you fly, though that's becoming less and less important, and what equipment you have). Outside the US, plan on not having any datalink weather and if you manage to get some through your cell it's a bonus.

 

[Jaybird180]

Inmarsat will deliver worldwide data services. No idea on price. IIRC Cirrus started including the equipment in their planes as an option a few years ago. I thought it was a silly idea....but hey, sometimes there are people that need such things.