Helsinki, 2nd November 2023

Winter conditions at Finland airports –

requirements for pilots and air operators
Winter conditions at airports in Finland can be ATS unit, however, they are given in the di-
very challenging from October to March, when rection of landing.
there is plenty of snow and ice. For safety
- SNOWTAM and ATIS messages may contain
reasons, pilots and air operators with limited
information regarding the take-off significant
experience from difficult winter conditions in
contaminant (TOSC) on the runway. The us-
northern Europe should read also these
age of contaminant reported as take-off sig-
instructions carefully.
nificant must be carefully considered and
The weather and surface conditions specially at based on the operator's own procedures re-
northern Finland airports can be very difficult. garding its operational utilization.
Besides runways, the taxiways and aprons may - When determining TOSC, the reporting sys-
also be partly or entirely covered with snow and tem collects all contaminants reported on the
ice, but yet in an operable condition. runway and divides them into thin (none
drag causing) and thick (drag causing) con-
Airport conditions are reported in taminants in respect to airplane perfor-
SNOWTAM messages mance. The system reports TOSC as an addi-
Airport movement area conditions are reported tional information, in compliance with an
using a SNOWTAM message. Some of the most interpretation of the aircraft performance
important issues to consider are listed below. requirements specified in regulation
CS-25 AMC 1591.
- Runway conditions reporting is based on
Global Reporting Format (GRF). Runway Pilots are required to check the content and
Condition Assessment Matrix (RCAM) is used effect of SNOWTAMs before operating to
in order to assign the RWYCC and for runway airports in Finland. It is important to understand
surface description. Reported RWYCC and how the reported conditions actually affect flight
contaminant type, coverage and depth are operations. Air carriers must ensure that their
based upon runway inspector's overall as- pilots receive sufficient SNOWTAM training. The
sessment of the surface conditions. Measure- aim is to time runway maintenance according to
ments and sensor data may supplement vi- the needs of air traffic. Flight planning must
sual observations. take into account the possibility that the
conditions prevailing at take-off time may be
- When assessing the contamination and fric-
significantly different from landing time.
tion the runway inspector can either down-
grade or upgrade the reported RWYCC value There are no Specially prepared winter runway
compared to the contaminant specific value (SPWR) operations in Finland.
in the RCAM table. Up-to-date information on runway conditions is
- In SNOWTAM messages, the conditions are available from ATIS or the ATS unit. Airport
reported for each third of the runway, begin- maintenance actions can also be requested
ning from the smaller runway designator. In where necessary.
landing instructions provided by ATIS or the

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Winter Operations Bulletin, rev 1 2nd November 2023

Sand is not used in Finland to improve surface report their own intentions. The AFIS unit is
friction. The ATS unit and airport maintenance responsible for the use of any necessary
are there at the pilots’ service. aerodrome equipment, and for controlling
vehicle traffic.
En-route and initial approach
Runway conditions and prevailing weather may Operational procedures for AFIS aerodromes
vary. Whenever necessary, ask for the latest are described in section GEN 3.3, paragraph 3.1
information directly from the destination airport of the Aeronautical Information Publication, AIP
in good time. The information is available Finland. Please read them before operating to
during opening hours which can vary daily. any AFIS aerodrome.
Check the opening hours from www.ais.fi
NOTAMs. Up-to-date information on runway
Approach and landing
conditions is available on ATS frequency during To minimize the risk of runway excursion, it is
flight. essential to make sure that the approach is
stabilized, especially when approaching a
Airports may provide AFIS, radar service or runway with Runway Condition Code
procedural ATC service. The effect of the service RWYCC = 3 or lower. In some cases (available)
level on pilot responsibilities must be noted. runway width may be less than in AIP
published nominal width.
In case ATC is vectoring IFR flight or when
giving a direct routing which takes the aircraft The decision on making a go-around must be
off an ATS route, the controller will issue made early in case of any signs of an
clearances such that the prescribed obstacle unstabilized approach. It is also important to
clearance will exist at all times until the aircraft note that the touchdown zone markings may
reaches the point where the pilot will resume not be fully visible.
own navigation. Such a clearance will include
correction for low temperature effect when the When there are reported deposits (e.g. snow
required correction exceeds 20% of the and ice) on the runway, friction may vary
prescribed minimum obstacle clearance. significantly along the runway length and, in
some wind conditions, also between the left and
If correction for low temperature effect is taken right side of the runway centerline.
into account by the controller, given clearance
includes "TEMPERATURE CORRECTED BY ATC". AIREP
The temperature limit for when temperature The pilots' possible assessments of the runway
correction is required may vary from airport to condition (AIREP) must be reported according
airport. to Runway Condition Assessment Matrix scale
good – less than poor.
At AFIS airports and airports with procedural
ATC, pilots are responsible for calculating any Runway, taxiways and apron
temperature corrections themselves. It is Conditions on taxiways and at the apron may
particularly important to take account of differ from those on the runway, usually in the
temperature corrections in cold winter lower direction. Taxiway and apron conditions
conditions. are only reported when conditions are assessed
slippery, poor or less than poor. Under such
Aerodrome Flight Information Service
conditions utmost caution shall be taken when
(AFIS)
manoeuvring the aircraft. Note that there is
Some Finnish airports are not providing air
normally snow and ice on the taxiways and
traffic control service, but only have an AFIS
apron, and they can be slippery. In such
unit that provides Aerodrome Flight Information
conditions, it is especially important to prepare
Services. The AFIS unit reports any known
for any movements or changes well in advance.
traffic, and the pilot-in-command is responsible At some airports, the apron or aircraft stands
for maintaining safe distance to other traffic
may be on sloping ground, which means that
based on these reports and in compliance with parking brakes must be used. Check the need
the Rules of the Air. Pilots are also required to
for using brakes from airport ground services.

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Winter Operations Bulletin, rev 1 2nd November 2023

It is important to note that freezing The flight crew must also be equipped for cold
temperatures may affect brakes and other and challenging winter conditions. Working
aircraft devices. outdoors in Finland's cold conditions requires
special equipment, as temperatures can drop
Passengers must also be warned that the apron
very low, especially in the north. In the aviation
may be slippery.
industry, safety is always a priority, and all
De-icing and anti-icing these measures and preparations are part of it,
so that every flight goes safely despite the
In winter, operators must identify the possible
winter conditions.
need for aircraft de-icing on the ground, make
sure that de-icing services are available, and
Weather services supporting opera-
verify that their aircrews are appropriately
tions in winter conditions
trained also for de-icing operations on the
ground. Finnish Meteorological Institute provides
aeronautical meteorological services in Finland.
Under challenging winter conditions, proper de- Nordic Significant Weather Chart including for
icing is an essential element of flight safety. example icing forecast can be found from
When there is reason to suspect that frost, ice ilmailusaa.fi which is the official service for
or snow is adhering to aircraft surfaces, the aeronautical meteorological services.
need for de-icing must be determined. This
must be done from a point offering good As additional services FMI provides i.a. EFHK
visibility of the aircraft surfaces. Once the need Weather Display for Helsinki Airport and ILMARI
for de-icing has been determined, the pilot-in- AWOSVIEW for other airport to view real-time
command is responsible for deciding whether observations. Airport Forecast is produced to
de-icing treatment is necessary. Helsinki Airport which is a specialized forecast
to support interpreting weather conditions. FMI
The ‘Clean Aircraft Concept’ ensures safe flight has also developed Winter Weather forecast
operations. In all operations, the pilot-in- products related to icing and de-icing to users
command is responsible for assessing whether across Europe. Products are SWIM compliant
operation is safe. The aircrew and ground or and can be found via
maintenance personnel must still report https://eur-registry.swim.aero/services.
anything that may affect flight safety. Open
© Andrew Libert
communication is vital, and all matters affecting
airworthiness must be communicated to the
pilot-in-command in a clear and brief manner.
It is crucial that the aeroplane must not take off
if the pilot-in-command has not been able to
assess whether the aeroplane is free of frost,
ice and snow. This requirement can also be met
by having the aeroplane checked by personnel
Further information
with relevant training and ratings.
Further information on winter operations,
Any contamination observed before a flight can seasonal snow plan for winter season and
be removed by applying a hot de-icing fluid that runway condition assessment (GRF) are
will melt and flush off ice and snow deposits. available from
Moreover, anti-icing fluid may be sprayed on - Aeronautical information circular (AIC A)
critical surfaces before take-off to prevent new Seasonal snow plan for the winter season
formations of frost and ice. 2023/2024
The pilot-in-command must check the hold-over https://www.ais.fi/ais/aica/AipAicA_en.htm.
times of de-icing fluids from the tables - eAIP, AD 1.2 https://www.ais.fi/eaip/
available. It is important to ensure ‘Clean Further information on Finnish Meteorological
Aircraft Concept’ also during departure taxing Institute aeronautical meteorological services is
and take off. available from [email protected].

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Winter Operations Bulletin, rev 1 2nd November 2023

Have a safe flying season and

welcome to airports in Finland!
This information leaflet was drafted jointly by Finavia Corporation, Lappeenranta, Enontekiö, Mikkeli
and Seinäjoki airports, Finnair, Norra, Fintraffic ANS, Finnish Meteorological Institute and the Finnish
Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom), which is the civil aviation authority of Finland.

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