Aircraft may be fitted with various types of windshear detection systems, each using different principles to detect windshear. The traditional system uses the aircraft’s current flight parameters to calculate whether or not the aircraft is currently experiencing windshear. When such a system determines that the aircraft is experiencing windshear, a warning will be generated to the flight crew and it is usual for the flight computers to show the flight crew, via the FD’s, the required ‘windshear escape manoeuvre’. Another type of system uses the weather radar scan to predict areas of windshear ahead of the aircraft. When such a system predicts areas of windshear ahead of the aircraft, appropriate advisories or warnings will be generated to the flight crew.

It should be noted that SOPs usually state the required actions depending on whether an advisory or warning has been generated and from which type of system. This may therefore mean that the flight crew must take the specified action, e.g. initiating a go-around or rejecting the take-off.

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• Crew Information and Action Flow
• Automatic Flight
• Operation of the Radio and Intercom Selector Panels
• GPWS

Return to Flight Deck Procedures - A Guide for Controllers

Further Reading

UK CAA

Safety Notice: Missed Approaches in Response to Onboard Windshear Alerts, 04 June 2013