Aviation weather in Western Europe

A maritime climate whose defining problems are visibility and wind rather than convection: radiation fog at inland hubs, autumn and winter gales that push crosswinds past limits, and low stratus that sits for days.

At a glance

Main hazards Fog, Low visibility, Crosswind, Airframe icing, Turbulence
Most demanding season October – February
Thunderstorm season June – August
Representative airports EGLL · LFPG · EDDF · EHAM · EBBR
Official sources Met Office aviation services (UK) · DWD pilot briefing (Germany)

The services linked above are the authoritative source for this region. This page explains what their reports contain; it is not a substitute for an official briefing.

What these hazards mean

Fog Radiation fog forms on clear, calm nights and burns off late; sea fog can sit for days. It closes airports that were forecast open.
Low visibility Fog, mist, haze, dust or heavy precipitation cutting visibility below the minimum for the approach in use.
Crosswind Wind across the runway. Every aircraft has a demonstrated limit, and a wet or contaminated surface lowers what is usable well below it.
Airframe icing Supercooled water freezing on the wing, changing its shape and adding weight — worst between 0 °C and −20 °C in visible moisture.
Turbulence Clear-air, mechanical or convective. The clear-air kind gives no visual warning and is why the seatbelt sign stays on in cruise.

METAR decoder

Paste a raw observation and read it in plain language. It runs in your browser — the report never leaves your device, and nothing is stored.

Works with ICAO reports and with the North American SM / inHg variant.

Related guides

A wind sock and a low cloud base — the two fields a METAR is read for first

How to Read a METAR: Every Field, in Order

A METAR is one line in a fixed order. Read it left to right and each group answers a different question — here is what each one says and what it decides.

METAR and TAF decoding 9 min read

A crosswind approach: the aircraft tracking the centreline while pointing somewhere else

Crosswind and Runway Condition: Turning Wind Into a Number

How to convert a reported wind into a crosswind component, what a demonstrated limit actually is, and why a wet runway lowers the usable figure.

Weather and flight planning 8 min read

A ragged cloud base over a runway — the difference between a legal approach and a diversion

Weather Minimums: What VFR and IFR Actually Require

The difference between VFR and IFR is not skill, it is what the weather allows. Here are the visibility and cloud rules, and where the numbers come from.

Weather and flight planning 9 min read

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Last updated 2026-08-09 by aviationwheater.siten.co · About us

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