Narrative:

I was instructing an airways navigation flight from maf to tik. The WX en route was forecast by san angelo FSS to be VMC up to the oklahoma border, then from there to tinker the ceilings would be 25000 ft with a scattered layer at 6000 ft. I encountered WX consistent with the forecast along the route. Approaching shepard AFB, I noted the cloud conditions forecast by FSS. I called shepard metropolitan to update the WX en route to tinker and at tinker. The forecaster informed me of ceilings of 13000 ft and a layer scattered at 6000 ft. Shepard metropolitan also informed me that there was a low pressure front and associated clouds 20 mi wide extending from around altus to slightly east of ardmore and that it was moving southeast across oklahoma. There had been reports of moderate and rime icing conditions associated with the front. At this point I was flying on top of an overcast layer at 7000 ft. My outside air temperature gauge was reading 3 degrees C. The T34C does not have anti- icing equipment for the wings or control surfaces. It does have pitot heat. Because of this the T34C is not allowed to fly into icing conditions. I continued north because the forecaster at shepard told me that the ceiling was 13000 ft and I assumed that I would be between the layer and clear of icing conditions. As I continued north along V77 the layer of clouds I was above continued to rise, therefore I requested a climb twice to 9000 ft and then 11000 ft to avoid entry into the clouds. Approximately 20 mi north of the wichita falls VORTAC I determined from visual observation that I would not be able to continue along the airway north due to clouds in front of me and now a layer above me and outside air temperature readings below 0 degrees C. I asked shepard approach for a route change direct to the ardmore VORTAC, which to me seemed to be the only clear area that would take me in the general direction of tinker. This was denied by ZFW due to traffic routing considerations. I explained the need to remain clear of clouds and that that was not going to be possible if I continued north along V77. Shepard approach tried again to rerte my aircraft but was denied by ZFW. Proceeding on the assumption that the cloud tops would be only 13000 ft at ardmore, I canceled my IFR clearance and proceeded direct to the ardmore VORTAC under VFR, with the intention of climbing over the cloud cover under VFR rules around ardmore. I received flight following from shepard approach and ZFW during the VFR flight. I had to climb to 13500 ft then 15500 ft and finally 17500 ft to remain clear of the clouds along that route. At this point I realized that I was not going to be able to climb above the clouds without an IFR clearance. In an attempt to figure the best routing to VMC conditions, I contacted tinker metropolitan and advised them of my situation and asked for the nearest VMC conditions so I could let down without entering icing. They were able to tell me through radar images and PIREPS that if I continued northwest from my position I would encounter VMC in approximately 20 mi. While I was waiting for the report from tinker metropolitan I was forced to climb into the class a airspace to avoid clouds. I felt I had no choice due to the cloud conditions which were forcing me to climb to remain clear of icing. I switched up ZFW and asked for an IFR clearance after receiving the information from tinker metropolitan. The controller inquired as to why I had climbed into the class a airspace and I explained to him that I was encountering icing and needed to climb to avoid it. He did not respond to my request for IFR as quickly as I had expected. So, I declared an emergency and continued to climb to avoid the clouds. After several mins I was given an altitude of FL230 and was able to maintain clear of clouds. Approximately 35 mi southeast of tinker AFB I was able to maintain VMC conditions and descended without further incidence to tinker for a landing. The chain of events that led to this incident could have been broken with a better preflight WX briefing, no icing was mentioned. The WX that I encountered was not supposed to be at tinker until after we landed. I would not have and could not have (due to military directives) launched from midland if thewx was forecast en route or in the terminal phase to include icing. En route it did occur to me to turn around and proceed back to the VMC conditions but I chose not to because of my fuel state and the nearest divert was under a cloud layer when I flew over it earlier and I figured that the WX was probably worse than before due to the movement of the front. The thing that I could have done to prevent this whole thing was to communicate my situation better to center. I switched up tinker metropolitan because I felt they would give me better WX information than center. I realize that if I would have communicated with center they could have anticipated my actions better, given me an IFR clearance prior to the class a, and would have been more aware of my extreme situation. The reason that I did not communicate with center was a perception that center would not want to deal with a VFR aircraft in a high intensity environment.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: T34C MIL PLT WX BRIEFING DIDN'T INDICATE ICING CONDITIONS OR CLOUDS ALONG RPTR'S FLT PATH, YET HE KEPT CLBING TO STAY ABOVE CLOUDS AND ICING. EVENTUALLY HE HAD TO CLB INTO CLASS A AIRSPACE AND THEN REQUESTED AND RECEIVED AN IFR CLRNC.

Narrative: I WAS INSTRUCTING AN AIRWAYS NAV FLT FROM MAF TO TIK. THE WX ENRTE WAS FORECAST BY SAN ANGELO FSS TO BE VMC UP TO THE OKLAHOMA BORDER, THEN FROM THERE TO TINKER THE CEILINGS WOULD BE 25000 FT WITH A SCATTERED LAYER AT 6000 FT. I ENCOUNTERED WX CONSISTENT WITH THE FORECAST ALONG THE RTE. APCHING SHEPARD AFB, I NOTED THE CLOUD CONDITIONS FORECAST BY FSS. I CALLED SHEPARD METRO TO UPDATE THE WX ENRTE TO TINKER AND AT TINKER. THE FORECASTER INFORMED ME OF CEILINGS OF 13000 FT AND A LAYER SCATTERED AT 6000 FT. SHEPARD METRO ALSO INFORMED ME THAT THERE WAS A LOW PRESSURE FRONT AND ASSOCIATED CLOUDS 20 MI WIDE EXTENDING FROM AROUND ALTUS TO SLIGHTLY E OF ARDMORE AND THAT IT WAS MOVING SE ACROSS OKLAHOMA. THERE HAD BEEN RPTS OF MODERATE AND RIME ICING CONDITIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE FRONT. AT THIS POINT I WAS FLYING ON TOP OF AN OVCST LAYER AT 7000 FT. MY OUTSIDE AIR TEMP GAUGE WAS READING 3 DEGS C. THE T34C DOES NOT HAVE ANTI- ICING EQUIP FOR THE WINGS OR CTL SURFACES. IT DOES HAVE PITOT HEAT. BECAUSE OF THIS THE T34C IS NOT ALLOWED TO FLY INTO ICING CONDITIONS. I CONTINUED N BECAUSE THE FORECASTER AT SHEPARD TOLD ME THAT THE CEILING WAS 13000 FT AND I ASSUMED THAT I WOULD BE BTWN THE LAYER AND CLR OF ICING CONDITIONS. AS I CONTINUED N ALONG V77 THE LAYER OF CLOUDS I WAS ABOVE CONTINUED TO RISE, THEREFORE I REQUESTED A CLB TWICE TO 9000 FT AND THEN 11000 FT TO AVOID ENTRY INTO THE CLOUDS. APPROX 20 MI N OF THE WICHITA FALLS VORTAC I DETERMINED FROM VISUAL OBSERVATION THAT I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO CONTINUE ALONG THE AIRWAY N DUE TO CLOUDS IN FRONT OF ME AND NOW A LAYER ABOVE ME AND OUTSIDE AIR TEMP READINGS BELOW 0 DEGS C. I ASKED SHEPARD APCH FOR A RTE CHANGE DIRECT TO THE ARDMORE VORTAC, WHICH TO ME SEEMED TO BE THE ONLY CLR AREA THAT WOULD TAKE ME IN THE GENERAL DIRECTION OF TINKER. THIS WAS DENIED BY ZFW DUE TO TFC ROUTING CONSIDERATIONS. I EXPLAINED THE NEED TO REMAIN CLR OF CLOUDS AND THAT THAT WAS NOT GOING TO BE POSSIBLE IF I CONTINUED N ALONG V77. SHEPARD APCH TRIED AGAIN TO RERTE MY ACFT BUT WAS DENIED BY ZFW. PROCEEDING ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE CLOUD TOPS WOULD BE ONLY 13000 FT AT ARDMORE, I CANCELED MY IFR CLRNC AND PROCEEDED DIRECT TO THE ARDMORE VORTAC UNDER VFR, WITH THE INTENTION OF CLBING OVER THE CLOUD COVER UNDER VFR RULES AROUND ARDMORE. I RECEIVED FLT FOLLOWING FROM SHEPARD APCH AND ZFW DURING THE VFR FLT. I HAD TO CLB TO 13500 FT THEN 15500 FT AND FINALLY 17500 FT TO REMAIN CLR OF THE CLOUDS ALONG THAT RTE. AT THIS POINT I REALIZED THAT I WAS NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO CLB ABOVE THE CLOUDS WITHOUT AN IFR CLRNC. IN AN ATTEMPT TO FIGURE THE BEST ROUTING TO VMC CONDITIONS, I CONTACTED TINKER METRO AND ADVISED THEM OF MY SIT AND ASKED FOR THE NEAREST VMC CONDITIONS SO I COULD LET DOWN WITHOUT ENTERING ICING. THEY WERE ABLE TO TELL ME THROUGH RADAR IMAGES AND PIREPS THAT IF I CONTINUED NW FROM MY POS I WOULD ENCOUNTER VMC IN APPROX 20 MI. WHILE I WAS WAITING FOR THE RPT FROM TINKER METRO I WAS FORCED TO CLB INTO THE CLASS A AIRSPACE TO AVOID CLOUDS. I FELT I HAD NO CHOICE DUE TO THE CLOUD CONDITIONS WHICH WERE FORCING ME TO CLB TO REMAIN CLR OF ICING. I SWITCHED UP ZFW AND ASKED FOR AN IFR CLRNC AFTER RECEIVING THE INFO FROM TINKER METRO. THE CTLR INQUIRED AS TO WHY I HAD CLBED INTO THE CLASS A AIRSPACE AND I EXPLAINED TO HIM THAT I WAS ENCOUNTERING ICING AND NEEDED TO CLB TO AVOID IT. HE DID NOT RESPOND TO MY REQUEST FOR IFR AS QUICKLY AS I HAD EXPECTED. SO, I DECLARED AN EMER AND CONTINUED TO CLB TO AVOID THE CLOUDS. AFTER SEVERAL MINS I WAS GIVEN AN ALT OF FL230 AND WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN CLR OF CLOUDS. APPROX 35 MI SE OF TINKER AFB I WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN VMC CONDITIONS AND DSNDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENCE TO TINKER FOR A LNDG. THE CHAIN OF EVENTS THAT LED TO THIS INCIDENT COULD HAVE BEEN BROKEN WITH A BETTER PREFLT WX BRIEFING, NO ICING WAS MENTIONED. THE WX THAT I ENCOUNTERED WAS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE AT TINKER UNTIL AFTER WE LANDED. I WOULD NOT HAVE AND COULD NOT HAVE (DUE TO MIL DIRECTIVES) LAUNCHED FROM MIDLAND IF THEWX WAS FORECAST ENRTE OR IN THE TERMINAL PHASE TO INCLUDE ICING. ENRTE IT DID OCCUR TO ME TO TURN AROUND AND PROCEED BACK TO THE VMC CONDITIONS BUT I CHOSE NOT TO BECAUSE OF MY FUEL STATE AND THE NEAREST DIVERT WAS UNDER A CLOUD LAYER WHEN I FLEW OVER IT EARLIER AND I FIGURED THAT THE WX WAS PROBABLY WORSE THAN BEFORE DUE TO THE MOVEMENT OF THE FRONT. THE THING THAT I COULD HAVE DONE TO PREVENT THIS WHOLE THING WAS TO COMMUNICATE MY SIT BETTER TO CTR. I SWITCHED UP TINKER METRO BECAUSE I FELT THEY WOULD GIVE ME BETTER WX INFO THAN CTR. I REALIZE THAT IF I WOULD HAVE COMMUNICATED WITH CTR THEY COULD HAVE ANTICIPATED MY ACTIONS BETTER, GIVEN ME AN IFR CLRNC PRIOR TO THE CLASS A, AND WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE AWARE OF MY EXTREME SIT. THE REASON THAT I DID NOT COMMUNICATE WITH CTR WAS A PERCEPTION THAT CTR WOULD NOT WANT TO DEAL WITH A VFR ACFT IN A HIGH INTENSITY ENVIRONMENT.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.