SLEET

Onlangs stelde ik weer vast dat de term gebruikt werdt in een LUCHTVAART  toelichting over het WEDER??

  CAUTION wat betekend ;  SLEET  ???


 I always react toward any METEOFORCASTER in EUROPE using the term SLEET.

 Raison is the folowing:

 In the 60 was I during a very large military excercise in EUROPE at NATO level flying  on a LIGHT HELICOPTER with a very important VIP and obtaining a weather briefing.

Standing on the METEO-DESK the forcaster mentioned the possiblity of SLEET witch was for me also possible in function of the avaible documentation suplied so I cancelled the flight very, witch upsetted the VIP strongly!!

Also because also on the desk there was a young american officer pilot who acepted to fly with his light helicopter and his 4 PAX.

 I recal thad I asked  the pilot if he had DEICING witch he answered as negative 

 I stayed on the ground and the Americanpilot left with his 4 passengers for his flight

Months later I was informed thad during this exercise there where a number of accidents including a deadly accident of a light american helicopter with 5 POB.

After futher difficult research I found it was the young American pilot with his 4 pax who received the same weather briefibg where i decided not to fly with my afresive VIP.

In vieuw of this I started to do some research on the term used as SLEET at ICAO and WMO level and found there is no definition for this term

However as a USA-CFI  i had located  the definition used at USA level as been " Dry icepellets not sticking to the airframe "where in my EUROPEAN used term it was" wet melting snow or rain mixed with snow and giving heavy icing."

After a long and intense mailing about this misuse of the term SLEET i received thad this term was not to be used in weather briefings in aviation

Note: on 13 Feb 2007 I  had again a  top METEOMAN using this termn  in a BRIEFING in EUROPE and on witch I made hem a verbal comment

 SAFETY is VITAL but very defficult to obtain ???