De-Icing & Winter Operations
Ground Operations & Airport Services › Ramp & Turnaround Operations · 15 L4 steps · 5 phases · 9 decision gates · Updated 2026-03-19 14:22
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Process Flow Diagram (BPMN)
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L4 Process Steps
| Step | Step Name | Role / Swim Lane | System | Input | Output | KPI | Dec? | Exc? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Phase 1 1.1 |
Activate Winter Operations Plan via AMS | Station Operations Manager | SITA Airport Management System (AMS) | Meteorological forecast showing OAT <= +3°C or freezing precipitation expected within 2 hours | WINOPS activation notice distributed to ground crews, ramp supervisors, and flight dispatch | Activation lead time >= 2 hours before first affected departure; 100% crew acknowledgement within 15 min | Y | N |
| 1.2 | Pre-Position De-icing Equipment and Brief Crews | Ramp Supervisor | Ground Support Equipment (GSE) Tracking System | WINOPS activation notice, flight schedule, de-icing pad/gate assignments | De-icing vehicles positioned at pad or gates; crews briefed, signed off on fluid handling procedures | Equipment readiness >= 30 min before first scheduled de-icing event; all crew holdover time (HOT) training current within 12 months | N | Y |
| 1.3 | Confirm Fluid Inventory and Type Availability | Ground Equipment Coordinator | De-icing Management System (DMS) | Current fluid stock levels (Type I, II, III, IV), upcoming flight schedule, forecast storm duration | Fluid availability confirmed and logged; reorder triggered if stock < 40% of estimated daily requirement | Fluid stock >= 120% of estimated daily requirement; reorder threshold: 40% remaining; no event aborted due to fluid shortage | Y | Y |
Phase 2 2.1 |
Monitor Real-Time Weather and Issue De-icing Advisory | Weather Operations Analyst | DTN Weather Operations | METAR, TAF, PIREP, real-time OAT, precipitation type and rate from DTN feeds | De-icing advisory issued specifying contamination type, severity level, and recommended fluid type | Advisory issued within 10 min of METAR update confirming frozen precipitation; advisory accuracy vs actual ramp conditions >= 90% | Y | N |
| 2.2 | Conduct Aircraft Contamination Walk-Around Inspection | De-icing Crew Chief | SITA Airport Management System (AMS) — Mobile Ops Tablet | Aircraft parked at gate or de-icing pad, current weather conditions, contamination advisory | Contamination type and surface coverage documented (wings, fuselage, tail, control surfaces, sensors) | Inspection completed within 5 min of aircraft block-in; 100% of critical surfaces (wing leading edge, ailerons, elevator, rudder, pitot tubes) checked | Y | N |
| 2.3 | Determine De-Icing Treatment Type and Fluid Selection | De-icing Crew Chief | De-icing Management System (DMS) | Contamination type (frost, snow, ice, freezing rain), OAT, precipitation rate, planned departure time | Treatment order specifying: Type I only vs. Type I + anti-icing fluid, dilution ratio, and sequence | Treatment type decision within 3 min of inspection completion; fluid selection compliant with SAE AMS 1424 (Type I) and AMS 1428 (Type IV) specifications | N | Y |
Phase 3 3.1 |
Position De-icing Vehicle and Establish Cockpit Communication | De-icing Operator | Telex / SITA ACARS | Treatment order, aircraft stand or pad assignment, vehicle positioning clearance from ramp controller | Vehicle positioned within safe working envelope; two-way communication established with flight deck; chocks and safety cones confirmed | Spray basket clearance >= 1 m from aircraft surface at all times; positioning complete within 3 min of vehicle arrival at stand | N | Y |
| 3.2 | Apply Type I Heated Fluid — Active Contamination Removal | De-icing Operator | De-icing Management System (DMS) | Contaminated aircraft surfaces, Type I fluid heated to 60–82°C, application nozzle settings | Aircraft surfaces cleared of snow, ice, and frost; fluid volume applied and temperature at nozzle logged in DMS | All critical surfaces clear of contamination after Type I pass; fluid temperature >= 60°C at application point; fluid waste rate < 5% through overspray | Y | Y |
| 3.3 | Apply Anti-Icing Fluid (Type II/IV) for Holdover Protection | De-icing Operator | De-icing Management System (DMS) | Clean aircraft surfaces confirmed, selected anti-icing fluid and dilution ratio, OAT, precipitation rate | Anti-icing fluid coat applied uniformly; application start time, volume, dilution ratio, and fluid type recorded to DMS with timestamp | Application completed within 3 min; fluid start time logged to second-level accuracy for HOT calculation; coating uniform per SAE AMS 1428 visual check | N | Y |
Phase 4 4.1 |
Calculate Holdover Time from FAA/TC Tables via EFB | De-icing Crew Chief | Jeppesen FliteDeck (EFB — FAA/TC HOT Table Application) | Anti-icing fluid type, dilution ratio, application start time, OAT, precipitation type and rate | HOT start and end times calculated and communicated to flight crew via ACARS or verbal relay | HOT calculation completed within 2 min of anti-icing fluid application start; communicated to captain before pushback clearance request; zero cases of HOT communicated after pushback initiation | Y | N |
| 4.2 | Conduct Post-Application Clean Aircraft Inspection | De-icing Crew Chief | SITA Airport Management System (AMS) — Mobile Ops Tablet | Anti-icing fluid applied, aircraft surfaces, current precipitation conditions | Clean aircraft confirmation issued or re-treatment ordered; inspection result logged with crew ID and timestamp | Inspection covers 100% of critical surfaces; completion within 5 min of fluid application finish; re-treatment rate < 8% of treated aircraft | Y | Y |
| 4.3 | Issue De-Icing Completion Record and Transmit to Flight Crew | De-icing Crew Chief | Telex / SITA ACARS | DMS treatment record (fluid type, volume, dilution, start/end time, HOT range), clean aircraft confirmation | De-icing completion report transmitted to flight deck via ACARS; paper copy retained for regulatory compliance per FAA AC 120-60B | Report transmitted >= 5 min before pushback; 100% compliance with FAA pre-takeoff contamination check communication requirement; zero ACARS transmission failures without verbal backup | N | Y |
Phase 5 5.1 |
Coordinate Pushback Within HOT Window | Ground Movement Controller | Amadeus Airport Management | HOT end time, ATC ground departure sequence, aircraft readiness confirmation, tug availability | Pushback clearance issued within HOT validity window; ATC ground movement coordination confirmed | Departure initiated >= 5 min before HOT expiry; on-time departure rate (D0) >= 78% during active winter ops; zero aircraft departing with documented expired HOT | Y | Y |
| 5.2 | Monitor Departure Queue for HOT Expiry and Re-Treatment Triggers | Station Operations Manager | SITA Airport Management System (AMS) | Real-time departure queue timestamps, HOT end times per aircraft, updated weather data from DTN | Re-treatment orders issued for aircraft exceeding HOT; ATC notified of delay and sequence changes | Re-treatment decision made >= 10 min before HOT expiry; zero aircraft cleared for takeoff with expired HOT; re-treatment throughput capacity >= scheduled de-icing volume + 20% buffer | Y | Y |
| 5.3 | Log De-Icing Event Data for Compliance and Performance Analysis | Ground Operations Analyst | AWS S3 / Redshift (De-icing Data Warehouse) | DMS treatment records (fluid volumes, times, tail numbers, crew IDs), HOT data, weather data, delay records | De-icing event records archived; fluid consumption and waste report generated; seasonal performance dashboard updated | 100% of de-icing events logged within 24 hours; fluid waste rate < 5% of applied volume; regulatory audit trail completeness >= 99.5%; glycol runoff report submitted to EPA/Transport Canada within 30 days of season-end | N | N |
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