Quote:
In a 14-page report, the Indonesian weather office said engine damage due to ice was “the most probable weather phenomenon” at play in the crash of the Airbus A320-200, which had 162 on board.
As a retired but fully qualified MoD Principal Scientific Officer meteorologist, I wonder how on earth does the Indonesian equivalent think it is even remotely qualified to speculate?
Their task is to:
record and disseminate the actual weather
predict the weather
disseminate predictions.
Secondary tasks might be to:
provide climatology
conduct research
Beyond that, speculation that ice was “the most probable weather phenomenon” is at best a hostage to fortune, at worst downright misleading.
If, God forbid, a similar accident occurred under UK jurisdiction, the Met. Office would not be speculating in public, or, if it did, would be kicked to bits by the various aviation authorities.
I hope!