AWOS Online, With Graphics

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Real-time information from the AWOS (Automated Weather Observation System) at your local GA airport may be online soon, if a project from Stanwyck Avionics gains traction. The company has developed graphic display software linked to AWOS that updates automatically every 60 seconds over the Internet. The display is for informational purposes only, but Bill Stanwyck told AVweb on Tuesday that he is working with the FAA to see if it can be certified. The graphic shows the airport runways with the wind on a compass rose, displaying direction and speed as well as headwind and crosswind components. The page also lists wind and temperature data, as well as the current METAR and trend information. Charts log each AWOS report minute by minute. Sidney Municipal in New York and Chester County in Pennsylvania have the latest version of the software. Other GA airports served are Columbia County in New York, Chester Airport in Connecticut, and Beaver Municipal in Utah. Stanwyck said the equipment and software package costs about $2,000. For you nerds out there who want to know more about the engineering, Stanwyck also told us in an e-mail: “It is written entirely in an object-oriented language and works under a Windows XP Pro platform. Included in the software is a Client RMM program that will allow us to remotely contact the display computer at the airports and update the software and check error logs on them. The maintenance program can also view the raw weather data and upload it to our server in real time for troubleshooting.” He said the system can also be programmed to remotely boot up the rotating beacon when IFR conditions arrive.

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