Definition
A route qualifier used in flight planning and Notices to Air Missions (NOTAM) coding to indicate that the associated information or routing is related to weather. When appended to a route or location identifier, it signals that the entry concerns weather conditions affecting that segment, fix, or area.
Plain English
A short tag meaning 'weather.' When you see /WX next to a route or location, it tells you the note attached is about weather affecting that area.
Context Anchor
Seen in PIREP formats in aviation weather reports, where each slash code marks a different part of the pilot’s report.
Derivation
WX is the long-standing aviation and telegraphy shorthand for 'weather.' The leading slash (/) is a common separator in coded aviation messages used to attach a qualifier to a route, fix, or identifier without introducing extra characters.
Why Pilots Care
Pilots must interpret the weather section to assess flight safety, visibility, and potential hazards before departure or during flight.
Intuition Check
Do not read the slash as a separate symbol with its own meaning here. In this context, /WX is simply the label for the weather section of a pilot report.
Example Sentence 1
While reviewing NOTAMs before departure, the pilot saw a /WX entry along the planned route and checked the associated text for thunderstorm activity.
Example Sentence 2
After the clouds, the /WX field listed FG for fog, alerting the pilot to low visibility.