Weather
Aviation weather briefings, PIREPs, AIRMETs and SIGMETs for drone pilots
Part 107 requires you to assess local weather but does not name a source. A Flight Service briefing (standard, abbreviated or outlook), the Aviation Weather Center website and PIREPs are the standard sources, and AIRMETs and SIGMETs tell you where hazardous weather is forecast.
Does Part 107 require a weather briefing?
No briefing from Flight Service is required. 14 CFR 107.49(a)(1) says that before flight the remote pilot in command must assess the operating environment, and that the assessment must include local weather conditions. It does not say where to get the information. The FAA study guide points remote pilots to aviationweather.gov for METARs and PIREPs. The Aviation Weather Handbook says pilots may get a regulatory-compliant briefing through online weather resources without contacting Flight Service, which describes crewed flight, but the same sources are useful to drone pilots.
Use them in this order: look at the broad picture (fronts, systems, advisories), then the forecast for your window (TAF, graphical forecasts), then current conditions (METAR, PIREPs, radar), then your own look at the site.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): 14 CFR 107.49 (eCFR); FAA Remote Pilot sUAS Study Guide (FAA-G-8082-22); FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026).
What is Flight Service?
Flight Service is the FAA program that serves pilots' weather needs through its flight service stations. Specialists are certified Pilot Weather Briefers who translate and interpret available reports and forecasts, but they are not authorized to make original forecasts. In the contiguous U.S., Hawaii and U.S. territories you can call 1-800-WX-BRIEF (1-800-992-7433), and in Alaska 1-833-AK-BRIEF (1-833-252-7433). The AIM lists the website www.1800wxbrief.com for online briefings. The Handbook says Flight Service briefings are time-stamped and archived for 45 days and that the site also lets pilots file flight plans and see weather on an interactive map.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026); FAA Flight Service (1800wxbrief.com).
What are the three briefing types?
| Type | When to ask for it | What it contains |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Planning a flight with no earlier briefing | Adverse conditions, VFR flight not recommended (voice only), synopsis, current conditions, en route forecast, destination forecast, winds aloft, NOTAMs, ATC delays |
| Abbreviated | You need an update or one or two specific items | Only what you have not already received, in the standard order |
| Outlook | Your departure is six or more hours away | Available forecast data for planning only; follow up with a standard or abbreviated briefing before departure |
The "VFR flight not recommended" phrase is advisory. The briefer uses it when the weather would make VFR flight doubtful, and the final decision rests with the pilot. The Handbook says this advisory is not provided over the internet. Current conditions are left out of a standard briefing if departure is more than two hours away, unless you ask. Heights are MSL unless the briefer says AGL or CIG, which matters when you convert to your 400 ft AGL working height.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026).
What does a drone pilot actually use?
Most of a manned standard briefing (winds aloft, en route legs, ATC delays) has little to do with a local drone job. What carries over is the structure: adverse conditions first, then the current and forecast conditions at your site, then airspace notices. Adverse items for a drone include thunderstorms, low ceilings, visibility under 3 SM, strong winds, icing, and TFRs. See temporary flight restrictions for the airspace side. A call to Flight Service can still be useful if you are unsure how to read the forecast, since the briefers interpret products.
What is a PIREP?
A PIREP is a pilot weather report. The AIM says FAA air traffic facilities must solicit PIREPs when ceilings are at or below 5,000 ft, visibility is at or below 5 miles, or thunderstorms, icing of light degree or greater, turbulence of moderate degree or greater, wind shear or volcanic ash are reported or forecast. PIREPs let other pilots see conditions that METARs and TAFs miss, such as cloud tops, in-flight visibility and turbulence at altitude, and forecasters use them to verify forecasts. The Handbook says PIREPs are routine (UA) or urgent (UUA). Urgent ones cover tornadoes and funnel clouds, severe or extreme turbulence, severe icing, hail, low-level wind shear within 2,000 ft, volcanic ash and other hazards.
| Code | Element | Example meaning |
|---|---|---|
| UA / UUA | Report type | Routine or urgent |
| /OV | Location | Position relative to a point or route |
| /TM | Time | UTC |
| /FL | Altitude | MSL; essential for turbulence and icing |
| /TP | Aircraft type | Essential for turbulence and icing |
| /SK | Sky cover | Cloud base and top, layers |
| /WX | Weather | Flight visibility, precipitation, obscurations |
| /TA | Temperature | Degrees Celsius |
| /WV | Wind | Direction in degrees magnetic and speed in knots |
| /TB | Turbulence | Intensity and type |
| /IC | Icing | Intensity and type |
| /RM | Remarks | Everything else |
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026).
How do I decode a PIREP?
Worked example
A constructed PIREP
Say you read ABC UA /OV ABC 090015/TM 1530/FL045/TP C172/SK BKN025-TOP045/WX FV05SM -RA/TA 08/WV 27015KT/TB LGT. ABC is the nearest reporting location and UA marks a routine report. The position is the 090 radial, 15 NM from ABC, at 1530 UTC, at 4,500 ft MSL, from a Cessna 172. broken cloud with bases at 2,500 ft MSL and tops at 4,500 ft MSL, flight visibility 5 SM in light rain, temperature 8 degrees C, wind from 270 degrees magnetic at 15 kt, light turbulence.
Notice that the PIREP wind is in degrees magnetic while a METAR wind is in degrees true. Altitudes are MSL, so the cloud base in a PIREP is not AGL. Drone pilots can read PIREPs at aviationweather.gov (PIREP/AIREP data) for cloud bases and tops near the job.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026).
What are AIRMETs?
An AIRMET describes en route weather that may affect aircraft safety at intensities lower than a SIGMET requires. They are meant especially for VFR pilots and operators of sensitive aircraft. Over the contiguous U.S. they are issued every 6 hours (0245, 0845, 1445 and 2045 UTC) and shown graphically as G-AIRMETs on aviationweather.gov and 1800wxbrief.com. The G-AIRMET maps cover:
- IFR conditions, meaning ceilings under 1,000 ft and/or surface visibility under 3 miles,
- widespread mountain obscuration,
- moderate icing and freezing levels,
- moderate turbulence,
- non-convective low-level wind shear potential below 2,000 ft AGL,
- sustained surface winds greater than 30 kt.
In the text format used in Alaska and Hawaii, AIRMET Sierra covers IFR and mountain obscuration, Tango covers turbulence, strong surface winds and low-level shear, and Zulu covers icing and freezing levels. The IFR criterion lines up with your own 3 SM rule, so an AIRMET Sierra area is a clear no-go signal for visibility under Part 107.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026).
What are SIGMETs and Convective SIGMETs?
A SIGMET covers hazards of greater intensity. Outside convective weather the contiguous U.S. issues them for severe icing, severe or extreme turbulence, widespread dust or sandstorms that lower visibility below 3 miles, and volcanic ash. A SIGMET is unscheduled and valid up to 4 hours. A Convective SIGMET covers thunderstorm hazards: severe thunderstorms with surface winds of 50 kt or more or hail of 3/4 in or more, tornadoes, embedded thunderstorms, lines of thunderstorms, and heavy precipitation covering 40 percent or more of an area of at least 3,000 square miles. The AIM says bulletins are issued hourly at H+55 for the western, central and eastern U.S. and imply severe or greater turbulence, severe icing and low-level wind shear. Center Weather Advisories are short-range, unscheduled nowcasts, generally for conditions in the next two hours.
| Product | Hazard level | Issued |
|---|---|---|
| AIRMET (G-AIRMET) | Moderate turbulence or icing, IFR, strong surface wind | Every 6 hours, unscheduled updates |
| SIGMET | Severe icing, severe or extreme turbulence, dust or sandstorm, ash | Unscheduled, valid up to 4 hours |
| Convective SIGMET | Severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, lines, embedded storms | Hourly at H+55 plus specials |
| Center Weather Advisory | Short-term nowcast within an ARTCC area | Unscheduled, about 2 hours |
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026).
Which aviationweather.gov products should I check?
The Aviation Weather Center site, run by the National Weather Service in Kansas City, groups its tools into weather and product menus. When this page was checked on 2026-11-14 the menus listed the Graphical Forecasts for Aviation (GFA) with layers for ceiling and visibility, clouds, precipitation, thunderstorms, temperature, winds, turbulence and icing, plus pages for SIGMET, G-AIRMET, Center Weather Advisories, prog charts, TAF map, forecast discussions, METAR/TAF data, PIREP/AIREP data and wind and temperature data. There is also a "Submit a PIREP" link and a pre-duty weather briefing tool. Menu names change from time to time, so check the current labels. The Handbook warns that the site has changed significantly and that it uses fewer copies of the website's images for that reason.
- METAR and TAF for the nearest reporting airports.
- GFA for ceiling and visibility, winds and thunderstorms at your time of flight.
- G-AIRMET and SIGMET for hazard areas.
- PIREPs for cloud bases and turbulence reports nearby.
- Radar, remembering the AIM point that mosaic imagery can be 15 to 20 minutes old.
Decode the products with the METAR guide, the TAF guide and the cheat sheet.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): Aviation Weather Center; FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026); AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology.
What does the test ask?
Expect a question like "what can a remote pilot find on aviationweather.gov" (METARs, TAFs, PIREPs, advisories), or what a PIREP or TAF is for. The free question in the app on weather sources covers this. Know the difference between an observation (METAR, PIREP) and a forecast (TAF, AIRMET, SIGMET), and that none of them replaces looking at the site yourself.
Sources (checked 2026-11-14): FAA Remote Pilot sUAS Study Guide (FAA-G-8082-22).
Free practice questions on this topic
1 original questions from the Sectional Cue bank. Try each one, then open the answer.
Weather sources
1. What can a remote pilot find on aviationweather.gov?
- METARs, TAFs, PIREPs and other aviation weather products
- LAANC airspace authorizations for controlled airspace
- Drone registration certificates for Part 107 operators
Show answer and explanation
A. METARs, TAFs, PIREPs and other aviation weather products
Aviationweather.gov is the Aviation Weather Center website, which publishes METARs, TAFs, pilot reports and other aviation weather products. LAANC authorizations come through FAA-approved service suppliers, not that site. Drone registration is done through FAADroneZone.
Source: PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Chapter 13
Related guides
- How to read a METAR for the Part 107 test
- How to read a TAF for the Part 107 test
- METAR and TAF abbreviations cheat sheet for the Part 107 test
- Weather for drone pilots: what the Part 107 test expects
- All Part 107 guides
Study the charts on your phone
Sectional Cue has 1150+ original questions with explanations, 27 FAA figures you can tap to read, and timed 60-question rehearsals. About 152 questions and three chart lessons are free.
Sources
- AIM Chapter 7, Section 1: Meteorology, checked 2026-11-14
- FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28B, 2026), checked 2026-11-14
- Aviation Weather Center, checked 2026-11-14
- 14 CFR 107.49 (eCFR), checked 2026-11-14
How this page was made: written by Certloom Learning from the sources above, with the rules checked against the current regulation text. Practice items are original questions from the app's reviewed bank. Spot an error? certloomlearning@gmail.com.