Every winter season, APS Aviation Inc. (a RHEA Group company) conducts several research and development activities to improve flight operations in winter conditions. The first projects of the 2021‑22 year were carried out in locations across Alberta and Quebec in Canada.
On a biennial basis, APS goes through an extensive amount of preparation to obtain data in very cold snow (VCS) conditions (-14°C or below). This includes constant weather monitoring, coordinating travel logistics, and chasing winter storms/conditions that typically do not occur in Montreal, Quebec, where APS is based. Collecting this data inevitably comes with high uncertainty due to the nature of weather forecasting. This year’s research activities had multiple projects within VCS testing: Artificial Snow research, Holdover Time Development and Type 1 fluid substantiation.
Although air travel has been limited for the past 2 years, continued de/anti-icing research remains a priority for public safety. The APS team continues to push forward to collect and analyze this valuable data.
