AIM

4/3/14

7−1−69

Meteorology

A3012

altimeter three zero one two

. . . . . . . .

RMK

remarks

. . . . . . . .

AO2

this automated station has a

. . . . . . . . .

weather discriminator (for

precipitation)

SPECI KCVG 152224Z 28024G36KT 3/4SM

+TSRA BKN008 OVC020CB 28/23 A3000 RMK

TSRAB24 TS W MOV E

SPECI

(nonroutine) aviation special

. . . . . . .

weather report

KCVG

Cincinnati, OH

. . . . . . .

152228Z

date 15

th

, time 2228 UTC

. . . . . .

(no modifier)

This is a manually generated

. .

report due to the absence of

“AUTO” and “AO1 or AO2”

in remarks

28024G36KT

wind two eight zero at 

. .

two four gusts three six

3/4SM

visibility three fourths

. . . . . . . .

+TSRA

thunderstorms, heavy rain

. . . . . . .

BKN008

ceiling eight hundred broken

OVC020CB

two thousand overcast

. . .

cumulonimbus clouds

28/23

temperature two eight, 

. . . . . . . . .

dew point two three

A3000

altimeter three zero zero zero

. . . . . . . .

RMK

remarks 

. . . . . . . .

TSRAB24

thunderstorm and rain began

. . . . .

at two four

TS W MOV E

thunderstorm west moving

east

c. Aerodrome Forecast (TAF).

A concise state-

ment of the expected meteorological conditions at an

airport during a specified period. At most locations,

TAFs have a 24 hour forecast period. However, TAFs

for some locations have a 30 hour forecast period.

These forecast periods may be shorter in the case of

an amended TAF. TAFs use the same codes as

METAR weather reports. They are scheduled four

times daily for 24−hour periods beginning at 0000Z,

0600Z, 1200Z, and 1800Z.

Forecast times in the TAF are depicted in two ways.

The first is a 6−digit number to indicate a specific

point in time, consisting of a two−digit date,

two−digit hour, and two−digit minute (such as

issuance time or FM). The second is a pair of

four−digit numbers separated by a “/” to indicate a

beginning and end for a period of time. In this case,

each four−digit pair consists of a two−digit date and

a two−digit hour.
TAFs are issued in the following format:
TYPE OF REPORT/ICAO STATION IDENTIFIER/

DATE AND TIME OF ORIGIN/VALID PERIOD

DATE AND TIME/FORECAST METEOROLOG-

ICAL CONDITIONS

NOTE

−

The “/” above and in the following descriptions are for
separation purposes in this publication and do not appear
in the actual TAFs.

TAF KORD 051130Z 0512/0618 14008KT 5SM BR

BKN030 

TEMPO 0513/0516 1 1/2SM BR

FM051600 16010KT P6SM SKC

FM052300 20013G20KT 4SM SHRA OVC020

PROB40 0600/0606 2SM TSRA OVC008CB 

BECMG 0606/0608 21015KT P6SM NSW

SCT040
TAF format observed in the above example:
TAF = type of report
KORD = ICAO station identifier
051130Z = date and time of origin (issuance time)
0512/0618 = valid period date and times
14008KT 5SM BR BKN030 = forecast meteorolo-

gical conditions
Explanation of TAF elements:

1. Type of Report.

There are two types of TAF

issuances, a routine forecast issuance (TAF) and an

amended forecast (TAF AMD). An amended TAF is

issued when the current TAF no longer adequately

describes the on-going weather or the forecaster feels

the TAF is not representative of the current or

expected weather. Corrected (COR) or delayed

(RTD) TAFs are identified only in the communica-

tions header which precedes the actual forecasts.

2. ICAO Station Identifier.

The TAF code

uses ICAO 4−letter location identifiers as described

in the METAR section.

3. Date and Time of Origin.

This element is

the date and time the forecast is actually prepared.

The format is a two−digit date and four−digit time

followed, without a space, by the letter “Z.”

4. Valid Period Date and Time.

The UTC

valid period of the forecast consists of two four−digit