GUSTING or MAXIMUM?

[ERCELL]

"Maximum" is in use by all german Tower Controllers to emphasize gusting of surface wind , instead of "GUSTING" , any idea about ?

[Data Dad]

ERCELL - I can't speak for Germany but at the tower I work in the UK we have AGI wind measuring systems which measure and display the average wind speed and direction over the preceding 2 minutes. They also display the MAXIMUM and MINIMUM wind speed in the preceding 10 minutes but only if that speed is more than 10kts difference from the 'average'. We are supposed to report it as 'Maximum' or 'Minimum'. 'Gusting' (does that word have an official definition?) to me as a native English speaker implies something happening now, not something nearly 10minutes old...

DD

[madlandrover]

From the aircraft point of view in the UK we'd expect to hear "Gusting" when it's 10 knots more than the average (and yes, a current gust, although it's also good to hear about gust conditions in the last 10 mins!), and "Maximum" when it's less than 10 knots above the average. There's sometimes too high a tendency to use "Gusting" for any wind speed increase - the danger being that it can make pilots unnecessarily nervous, something I see occasionally with students.

[twisties]

In Oz we have had gusting replaced by the term maximum. In my experience a lot of controllers would still say gusting. Our manual of ATS continues to attempt to align itself with ICAO.

This is what it tells us to record on an ATIS.

Quote WIND SPEED as:
a. CALM (less than 1 KT eg “WIND CALM”); or
b. SINGLE MEAN VALUE whenever the extremes between minimum
and maximum are 10 KT or less (eg “WIND [DIRECTION]/
[SPEED]”); or
c. TWO VALUES REPRESENTING MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM
VALUES whenever the extremes in wind speed vary by more than
10 KT (eg “WIND [DIRECTION] MINIMUM [SPEED] MAXIMUM
[SPEED]”).

Hope that helps

[Data Dad]

From the UK AIP GEN 3-5 para 3.1.1

'However, at other designated aerodromes the wind reports for take-off and landing are averaged over the previous 2 minutes. Variations in the wind direction are given when the total variation is 60° or more and the mean speed above 3 kt, the directional variations are expressed as the two extreme directions between which the wind has varied in the past 10 minutes. In reports for take-off, surface winds of 3 kt or less include a range of wind directions whenever possible if the total variation is 60° or more. Variations from the mean wind speed (gust and lulls) during the past 10 minutes are only reported when the variation from the mean speed has exceeded 10 kt. Such variations are expressed as the maximum and minimum speeds attained.'

(my bold)

DD

[PEI_3721]

Ref UK AIP GEN 3.5,
I interpret this as requiring 'maximum' to be used in the verbal (ATC) wind report - the 2 min mean wind and the 10 min ‘maximum and minimum’ wind speed.
Gust appears to apply to forecasts, METARS, etc, e.g. 240/25G45
Are ‘gust’ or ‘gusting’ formal ATC terms?

[flowman]

Some time ago a colleague of mine reported the wind as "light and variable".
A crusty old BA skipper came back with "Can you be a bit more specific?".
My colleague's response was "Certainly, variable 180 to 360, one knot gusting two".

[ERCELL]

yes , It seems not wrong to say 'maximum' instead of 'gusting' also it gives better meaning to emphasize for 2 mins period but ! no phraseologies CAP413, DOC444, DOC9377.....nice to hear from native speakers that 'MAXIMUM' gives better information about 2 mins period but Its not good to hear unexpected words just before landing

doc9377
4.2Wind direction, speed and maximum speed
WIND (number) DEGREES (number) [units] GUSTING TO
(number) (units)

thanks..