Decided against DAY-PKB today, ice?

[mikegreen]

So I looked at the weather, and out the window.. snow showers off an on.. right at 0c on the ground.

Then I went to avwxworkshops to check the skew-t..

Ice forecast was trace-ish up to 9k, then clear above. Skew-t showed dewpoint/temp merging at 4-6k but that merger growing in a few hours when I'd be flying.

Back to the homepage, I noticed this:
http://avwxworkshops.com/workshop-detail.php?contentSet=MjI5
Which had the description

During the cold season, it is quite common to find a blanket of stratocumulus clouds in the wake of a strong cold front. Stratocumulus clouds rarely have a depth of more than a few thousand feet. Even when it is cold enough for structural icing, pilots are often tempted to descend or climb through this rather “thin” layer of clouds. While some stratocumulus decks can be quite harmless even for an unprotected aircraft, they can dish out some of the most intense structural icing that can quickly overwhelm many certified ice protection systems (IPS). In this workshop, we’ll examine the icing environment for a cold stratocumulus deck that produced severe icing conditions as reported by the crew of two Boeing 767s.

And realize I'd be flying in these conditions... well, flying along with a cold front moving in, with those clouds moving in.

Thoughts? Did I chicken out (182RG with all the anti-ice features like defroster, and uh, pitot heat) reasonable? Would it have been fine at 9k and descend down into PKB?

That said - I've never flown in snow. At 0c ground temp, will I get ice build up from snow right after takeoff? Or would I need some other conditions to get icing in a snow shower?

 

[saracelica]

Probably wise choice to stay on the ground. I am up in Toledo (KTDZ) and was up at 3k with my CFII and we picked up some rime ice on the leading edges of the wings and prop. Not sure if it'd be better up at 9k but there was ice in them clouds up here.

Shouldn't doubt a decision to stay on the ground. IR I hear is nice but it's not a free for all.

 

[Clip4]

So I looked at the weather, and out the window.. snow showers off an on.. right at 0c on the ground.

Then I went to avwxworkshops to check the skew-t..

Ice forecast was trace-ish up to 9k, then clear above. Skew-t showed dewpoint/temp merging at 4-6k but that merger growing in a few hours when I'd be flying.

Back to the homepage, I noticed this:
http://avwxworkshops.com/workshop-detail.php?contentSet=MjI5
Which had the description


And realize I'd be flying in these conditions... well, flying along with a cold front moving in, with those clouds moving in.

Thoughts? Did I chicken out (182RG with all the anti-ice features like defroster, and uh, pitot heat) reasonable? Would it have been fine at 9k and descend down into PKB?

That said - I've never flown in snow. At 0c ground temp, will I get ice build up from snow right after takeoff? Or would I need some other conditions to get icing in a snow shower?

http://www.planeandpilotmag.com/pro...ng-folklore.html?tmpl=component&print=1&page=


Looks like you could leave now. PKB forecast 2500 bkn in an hour.

 

[azure]

Thoughts? Did I chicken out (182RG with all the anti-ice features like defroster, and uh, pitot heat) reasonable? Would it have been fine at 9k and descend down into PKB?

Good decision, I think. I have punched through thin stratocu layers, but always with temps above freezing in the boundary layer and/or bright sunshine above. If in doubt, better to avoid the clouds or stay on the ground.

That said - I've never flown in snow. At 0c ground temp, will I get ice build up from snow right after takeoff? Or would I need some other conditions to get icing in a snow shower?

The conventional wisdom is you won't pick up ice from snow showers. I've flown many times in snow showers (once during IFR training in a flurry heavy enough to drop vis below VFR mins) and never had a problem with structural icing. That said, if the snow is wet or your airframe is above freezing, the snow could melt and refreeze. Generally I won't take off if it's snowing on the ground and close to freezing, given that it will usually be well below freezing at pattern altitude under those conditions. (Plus, if it's slightly below freezing on the ground, it's probably above freezing in the hangar.)