Definition
Designated locations that observe and transmit official surface weather data — including ceiling, visibility, wind, temperature, dew point, and altimeter setting — for use in aviation forecasts, flight planning, and instrument approach minimums. A reporting station may be staffed by human observers, automated (such as ASOS or AWOS), or a combination of both.
Plain English
Specific airports or sites that officially measure and report the current weather. Pilots and controllers rely on these reports to know what the weather actually is at a given location.
Context Anchor
Seen in instrument flying when deciding whether reported weather meets ceiling and visibility requirements for an airport or procedure.
Derivation
Weather comes from an old word meaning the condition of the air. Station means a fixed place. Together, the phrase points to a fixed place where the condition of the air is observed and reported.
Why Pilots Care
Reports from these stations determine whether conditions meet legal minimums for departure, arrival, or continued flight under visual or instrument rules.
Grounding Statement
A weather reporting station tells you what the weather is where that station is, not what it is everywhere around it.
Intuition Check
Do not assume “weather reporting stations” means any place where someone talks about the weather. In aviation, it means an official observation point whose report can be used for flight decisions.
Example Sentence 1
Before starting the approach, the crew checked that the weather reporting station on the field was operating and that the reported visibility met the approach minimums.
Example Sentence 2
Changes reported by weather reporting stations along the route prompted the crew to request an alternate airport.