October 4, 2000
MEMORANDUM FOR: All Holders of Operations Manual
SUBJECT: Transmittal Memorandum for Operations Manual
Issuance 00-09
1. Material Transmitted:
National Weather Service Operations Manual (WSOM) Chapter
B-61, "Certification of Observers."
2. Summary:
This chapter describes National Weather Service (NWS) certification of observers policy. Significant changes include:
a. Procedures and standards for implementing the NWS policy for the certification of observers is included as an Appendix.
b. Deleted references to Chief of Overseas Operations.
c. Deleted temporary certification.
d. Department of Defense (DOD) responsibility for certifying DOD contract civilian observing personnel.
e. Deleted the requirement to use the Jaeger #2 standard for vision testing.
f. Deleted references to radar observations.
g. Synoptic observations only require local certification, i.e., no examination.
h. Added exemptions to observers not requiring Certificate of Authority to take Weather Observations.
3. Effects on Other Instructions:
This chapter cancels WSOM Chapter B-61, Certification of Observers, Issuance 83-9, dated May 12, 1983 and Revision 1, Issuance 88-2, dated January 21, 1988.
John J. Kelly, Jr.
WSOM-B-61-00-09
| Issue Date | Org. Code | NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE | Part | Chap. |
| 10-4-00 | OSO14 | Operations Manual | B | 61 |
CERTIFICATION OF OBSERVERS
Table of Contents: Page
1. General
3. Exemptions
5.1 Vision
5.2 Demonstrated Skills Proficiency
5.3 Certification Examinations
8. Recency of Experience Exceptions
A. Procedures and Guidance to Implement Certification Policies
1. General. This chapter prescribes the policies, assigns the responsibilities, and delegates the authority for the National Weather Service's (NWS) observer certification program. Certification is the means employed by the NWS to officially sanction the aviation, visibility only, and upper air weather observations used in the preparation of forecasts and warnings, and the support of aviation operations.
2. Applicability. All individuals who take or validate officially sanctioned aviation, visibility only, or upper air observations must possess a valid Certificate of Authority. In the context of this program, validate means a certified observer, supervising an observer trainee, assumes full responsibility for the validity of the observation taken by the trainee.
3. Exemptions. Certificates Of Authority are not required for the following classes of weather observations although the NWS also considers the observations official.
a. Weather observations taken by military or their civilian contract personnel.
b. Cooperative program observations, including supplementary data, river, rainfall, snowfall, snow depth, climatological observations, and severe storm reporting networks.
c. Coastal marine and cooperative merchant ships.
d. Pilot reports of in-flight weather conditions.
a. National Weather Service Headquarters (WSH). WSH establishes certification standards and develops certification examinations. Exception: the NWS Office at the FAA Academy writes the Tower Visibility Certification examination.
b. NWS Regions. The Regional Directors or designate shall administer the certification program in their area, issue Certificates of Authority to take official weather observations, and maintain accountability for each certificate issued.
c. The Meteorologist-in-Charge (MIC) of the NWS Office at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Academy. The individual assigned to this position shall administer the tower visibility observation certification program for all FAA and FAA contract Tower Controllers, and maintain accountability for each certificate issued.
d. Field Supervisors. Supervisors in charge of weather observation stations or facilities taking weather observations determine individual observer training needs, determine observer proficiency and recency of experience, and ensure only certified observers possessing a valid Certificate of Authority take or validate official aviation, visibility only, and upper air weather observations.
5. Qualifications. An individual must meet the vision standards, demonstrate skills proficiency, and attain a passing score on a certification examination for each type of weather observation program. An upper air observer who also takes aviation weather observations must be certified for both the upper air and the aviation observation programs.
5.1 Vision. All certified observers and all candidates for certification must have medical proof or be tested to ensure they have distant vision, corrected if necessary, of not less than 20/30 (Snellen) in the better eye. Individuals not meeting this standard shall furnish a statement from a physician, oculist, or optometrist that their visual acuity has been corrected to meet the standard before they are assigned official weather observation duties. If an observer must wear corrective lenses to meet the minimum eyesight standard, the observer must also wear corrective lenses while taking official observations.
5.2 Demonstrated Skills Proficiency. Before certification, individuals shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of their supervisor or other designated certificated observer, the ability to take, record, encode, and disseminate timely and accurate weather observations in accordance with the practices and procedures established in the appropriate observing Handbooks.
5.3 Certification Examinations. Unless an individual demonstrates skills proficiency, no attempt shall be made to administer the certification examination until adequate training is accomplished. A passing grade of at least 80 percent is required for each examination. If an observer fails to make a passing grade, another certification examination may not be administered for at least two weeks, to allow sufficient time for additional training and instruction. If an observer holding a valid certificate is reexamined and fails, the validity of the observer's certificate shall be suspended until the observer has made a passing grade on a subsequent certificate examination.
6. Certification. NWS Regional Directors or a designated representative, or the MIC, NWS Office at the FAA Academy, shall certify all observers who meet the qualifications.
7. Recency of Experience. Certified observers must demonstrate recency of experience in their assigned observing duties. If this standard is not met, the observer's certificate shall lapse. An observer with a lapsed certificate cannot take official weather observations. Further, a certificate lapsed for 90 days is automatically canceled and shall be returned to the issuing authority.
8. Recency of Experience Exceptions. Whenever the following individuals' duties require the taking or daily use of weather observations or the immediate supervision or training of personnel to take official weather observations, they are exempt from the recency of experience requirements as long as they continue in any of the duties for which they are certified:
a. NWS personnel who are directly involved in the training of observers, the creating of observing handbooks and training material, administering and managing upper air and surface programs including Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS), and development of the certification examinations.
b. FAA Academy instructors in surface observing.
c. FAA field supervisors and training personnel.