Clouds: Reading the Sky Condition Group
Nubes: cómo leer el grupo de condición del cielo
FEW — 3,500 FT AGL
Decode a sky condition (cloud layer) group's coverage code and altitude, and explain the difference between a ceiling and a reported cloud layer.
Cloud coverage and altitude directly determine whether a pilot can maintain visual reference to the ground and horizon, and a low ceiling is one of the most common reasons a VFR flight gets delayed, rerouted, or canceled entirely.
Teach It / Enséñalo
ENTIENDE
Los GRUPOS DE CONDICIÓN DEL CIELO informan las capas de nubes usando un código de cobertura de tres letras seguido de un valor de altitud de tres dígitos en cientos de pies AGL (sobre el nivel del suelo). Los códigos de cobertura son: FEW (pocas nubes), SCT (dispersas), BKN (nublado, la mayoría cubierto), y OVC (cielo cubierto). Un TECHO (ceiling) se define específicamente como la capa BKN u OVC más baja — las capas FEW y SCT, por definición, no cuentan como techo. Cuando el cielo está completamente oscurecido (como por niebla) sin una base de nubes distinguible, el informe usa "VV" (visibilidad vertical) seguido de una altura.
¿Tiene sentido?
AVIATION WORDS · Palabras de aviación
DILO EN INGLÉS · SAY IT IN ENGLISH
“The sky condition group tells you how much of the sky is covered by clouds and at what altitude, using codes like FEW, SCT, BKN, and OVC — and a real 'ceiling' only exists at a BKN or OVC layer.”
Visual Explanation / Explicación visual
SCT — 6,000 FT AGL
Ejemplo guiado
In the course's example METAR, "FEW035 SCT060" tells a pilot: a few clouds at 3,500 feet AGL, and scattered clouds at 6,000 feet AGL. Since neither layer is BKN or OVC, this report has no ceiling at all — a pilot has clear visual reference to the horizon and ground despite two reported cloud layers being present.
Real Aviation Application / Aplicación real en aviación
Ceiling height is checked directly against airspace-specific VFR cloud clearance requirements during every real preflight briefing — a low ceiling can make a planned route illegal under VFR even when visibility itself is otherwise good, which is exactly why ceiling and visibility are always evaluated together, not separately.
Ask Your Teacher / Pregúntale a tu maestro
- What are the actual cloud clearance requirements for VFR flight in each airspace class?
- How is the difference between BKN and OVC actually determined by an observer or automated station?
- What does it mean when a METAR reports no cloud layers at all?
HAMPTON'S .02 CENTS
The FEW/SCT-versus-BKN/OVC distinction for what actually counts as a "ceiling" is one of the most testable, precise facts in this entire course — it's worth a dedicated practice drill with several example cloud groups, since it's easy to think any cloud layer counts as a ceiling until this distinction is made explicit.
It Would Behoove You… Continue to the next lesson: the Temperature and Dew point group, the "T" and "D" in WWW VCT DAR.
Standards Alignment
CLASSROOM: METAR Fundamentals
FAA: FAA Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28), Chapter 6; 14 CFR § 91.155 — Basic VFR Weather Minimums
CERTIFICATION: Private Pilot, Part 107
SOURCES: Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28)