[nws-changes] 2-12-524: ISCS broadcast will cease Fwd: ADMIN NOTICE NOUS41 KWBC

• To: nws-changes@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
• Subject: [nws-changes] 2-12-524: ISCS broadcast will cease Fwd: ADMIN NOTICE NOUS41 KWBC
• From: Linda Miller <lmiller@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
• Date: Thu, 24 May 2012 10:10:38 -0600

-------- Original Message --------

882
NOUS41 KWBC 241442
PNSWSH

Service Change Notice 12-21
National Weather Service Headquarters Washington DC
1033 AM EDT Thu May 24 2012

TO:       Subscribers to:
          -Family of Services (FOS)
          -NOAA Weather Wire Service
          -Emergency Managers Weather Information Network
          -NOAAPort
          Other NWS Customers, Partners and Employees

FROM:     Cynthia Abelman
          Chief, Aviation Services Branch

SUBJECT:  International Satellite Communications System
          (ISCS) Broadcast Ending Effective July 1, 2012

Effective 0400 UTC Sunday, July 1, 2012, the ISCS broadcast will
cease when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ISCS
contract expires. NWS will make the ISCS broadcast data available
via an https Internet service.  Specifically, the NWS will make
the World Area Forecast System (WAFS) global forecast data
available on the WAFC Internet File Service (WIFS).
Additionally, WMO Regional Association IV members and
participating states can receive meteorological and aviation
weather products through the Global Telecommunication System
(GTS) Internet File Service (GIFS).

WIFS is used to provide WAFS products and related services as
defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
Annex 3. WIFS is in compliance with ICAO Document 9855,
Guidelines on the Use of the Public Internet for Aeronautical
Applications, and the associated FAA Advisory Circular 00-62,
Internet Communications of Aviation Weather and Notices to
Airmen, dated November 1, 2002, which enables WIFS to support the
dissemination of WAFS and related products via the Internet in
accordance with ICAO Annex 10.

WIFS supplies the same WAFS meteorological products as those
currently broadcast by ISCS. Such products include upper winds,
upper-air temperatures, upper-air humidity, height of the maximum
wind, tropopause height and temperature, and forecasts of
significant weather phenomena.

WIFS data can be accessed at:

  http://www.aviationweather.gov/wifs/

WIFS is only available to specific users per the ICAO regulations
referenced above. WIFS user access requests must be approved by
the United States Meteorological Authority to ICAO, which is the
U.S. FAA.

GIFS will make the ISCS broadcast products available for download
via https over the Internet as a data pull service. GIFS will
allow the current set of WMO Regional Association IV (RA-IV) ISCS
users and other select Member States to access products through
the NWS issuance of authorized service usernames and passwords.
All RA-IV ISCS users will need to transition from ISCS to GIFS by
July 1, 2012.

Coordinating information and status updates on the GIFS
implementation and transition is provided on the NWS ISCS
Webpage:

  http://www.weather.gov/iscs/countdown.php

This Website will be updated to keep you informed on the
schedule, progress and status of this transition.

For technical questions and support in registering user access
for WIFS, please contact:

  Jim McDuffy
  Aviation Weather Center
  Kansas City, MO 64153
  816-584-7263
  Dennis.J.Mcduffy@xxxxxxxx

For technical questions and support in registering user access
for GIFS, please contact:

  Robert Gillespie, PMP
  Program Manager, ISCS
  Silver Spring, MD 20910
  301-713-9478 x 140
  robert.gillespie@xxxxxxxx

This and other NWS Service Change Notices are online at:

  http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/notif.htm

$$