The Climatology of Aviation Hazards Impacting Romanian AIrports

The increasing air traffic at Romanian airports in recent years has necessitated a heightened focus on aviation safety standards. Simultaneously, climate change has altered the frequency of meteorological phenomena that impact aviation activities. This study aims to establish a baseline climatology and identify evolving trends of hazardous weather phenomena for the main airports in Romania between 1941 and 2022. The study uses ERA5 data to derive the most important parameters to study the occurrence of thunderstorms, low-level wind shear, reduced visibility, and snowfall, the weather phenomena that are relevant for the air traffic safety. The results show an increase in the number of hours with thunderstorms in the eastern part of the country and a rising trend in events with low-level wind shear in the western and central regions. Conversely, events with significant snowfall are decreasing in the eastern Carpathians and Muntenia region, while those with limited visibility are decreasing in the coastal regions and northeastern Romania. These findings can inform aviation safety regulations and help mitigate the impact of hazardous weather conditions on aeronautical activities.