Definition
A privately owned and operated weather observation station, typically installed at a home, business, school, or other private location, that measures local weather conditions such as temperature, humidity, wind, and pressure. PWS data is not part of the official FAA or National Weather Service observation network and is not approved for use as an official weather source for flight planning or operational decisions.
Plain English
A weather station owned by a private person or organization, not by the government. It records local weather, but pilots cannot use its readings as official weather information.
Context Anchor
Seen in cockpit alerts and aircraft equipment discussions, especially for takeoff, approach, and landing.
Derivation
Personal here means privately owned, as opposed to government-operated. Weather Station is the equipment that observes and records weather. The term simply distinguishes private setups from official ones.
Why Pilots Care
Gives pilots advance warning of wind shear so they can avoid sudden loss of airspeed or altitude that could lead to loss of control near the ground.
Grounding Statement
A Pws is meant to warn about dangerous wind changes before the aircraft flies into them.
Intuition Check
Pws is not a general weather forecast. It is an aircraft warning system focused on wind shear near the aircraft’s flight path.
Example Sentence 1
The pilot checked a neighbor's PWS for a quick look at local wind, but used the airport's AWOS for the actual preflight weather briefing.
Example Sentence 2
During the approach briefing the captain confirmed the PWS was armed and displaying normal operation.