Definition
Weather information transmitted to the cockpit in flight through a digital communications link, typically via satellite or ground-based broadcast, and displayed on a panel-mounted unit, multifunction display, or portable device. Common products include radar imagery, METARs, TAFs, AIRMETs, SIGMETs, PIREPs, and winds aloft. Most data link weather is delivered with a time delay and is intended for strategic planning rather than tactical avoidance of individual storm cells.
Plain English
Weather updates sent to your cockpit display while you're flying, so you can see things like radar images, forecasts, and pilot reports without calling anyone on the radio.
Context Anchor
You encounter data link weather on cockpit displays, portable receivers, or tablet apps when checking weather along the route during flight.
Derivation
Data link' refers to a digital connection that carries information between two points. Combined with 'weather,' it simply means weather data delivered over that digital link, as opposed to weather you get by voice over the radio or by looking outside.
Why Pilots Care
Gives pilots immediate visual access to weather along the route so they can adjust the flight path without waiting for voice updates.
Intuition Check
Data link weather does not mean the airplane is seeing the weather directly in real time. It means weather information is being sent to you through a communication link, and some of it may be several minutes old.
Example Sentence 1
Before departing, the pilot confirmed the data link weather subscription was active so en route radar and METARs would update on the cockpit display.
Example Sentence 2
With data link weather active, the crew diverted around a line of storms visible on the cockpit display.