Microburst during approach

어제(Day 17)는 윈드시어를 "만난 뒤 빠져나오는" 반응이었다면, 오늘은 마이크로버스트를 "미리 피하는 판단"이 핵심입니다. 예측 경고나 보고가 있으면 들어가지 않는 게 정답 — 접근을 포기하고 기다리거나 회항합니다. 문법은 대비를 말하는 in case 예요.

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1. Scenario

I was the First Officer of HL123, on approach to an airport with heavy showers nearby.

As we came down, we got a predictive windshear alert, and the tower reported a microburst on the approach. A microburst is a strong, sudden downdraft, and it is one of the most dangerous things on final.

We decided not to continue, in case we flew into the downdraft. We abandoned the approach and went around early, before we reached the dangerous area.

We told ATC we were going around because of the reported microburst, and we asked to hold clear of the weather with an expected-approach time, so we could plan our fuel. They gave us a holding fix upwind of the cell and kept us updated as it tracked across the field. We held for a few minutes while it moved through.

Once the microburst warning had cleared, we made a normal approach and landed safely.

2. At a Glance

English — On approach we got a predictive windshear alert, and the tower reported a microburst on final. A microburst is a strong downdraft — too dangerous to fly into — so the safe decision is to avoid it, not to fight it. We went around early, held clear of the weather in case it was still there, and only continued once the warning had cleared.

한국어 — 접근 중 예측 윈드시어 경고가 뜨고 타워가 파이널에 마이크로버스트를 보고했습니다. 마이크로버스트는 강한 하강 기류라 들어가기엔 너무 위험 — 그래서 정답은 맞서는 게 아니라 피하는 것입니다. 일찍 복행해 기상에서 떨어져 대기했고, 경고가 사라진 뒤에만 접근을 이어갔습니다.

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3. Key Verbs

predict

뜻: 예측하다

• The system gave a predictive windshear alert.
• The radar predicted windshear ahead on the approach.

report

뜻: 보고하다

• The tower reported a microburst on the approach.
• They reported that the cell was over the runway.

decide

뜻: 결정하다

• We decided not to continue the approach.
• We decided to go around early.

abandon

뜻: (접근을) 포기하다

• We abandoned the approach before the dangerous area.
• We abandoned the landing and climbed away.

hold

뜻: 체공·대기하다

• We held clear of the weather for a few minutes.
• We asked to hold until the cell moved through.

avoid

뜻: 피하다

• We avoided flying into the downdraft.
• We chose to avoid the microburst rather than fight it.

clear

뜻: (위험이) 사라지다

• Once the warning had cleared, we continued.
• We waited until the cell had cleared the approach.

monitor

뜻: 계속 확인하다

• We monitored the weather radar while holding.
• We monitored the tower reports.

divert

뜻: 회항하다

• If it had not cleared, we would have diverted.
• We were ready to divert if the weather stayed.

continue

뜻: 계속하다

• We continued once it was safe.
• We did not continue into the microburst.

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4. Key Expressions & Collocations

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5. Vocabulary

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6. Sentence Frames

빈칸만 갈아끼우면 다른 회피·판단 상황에도 그대로 씁니다.

• As we came down, we got a ____, and the tower reported ____. → … a predictive windshear alert, and the tower reported a microburst.
• We decided not to continue, in case ____. → … in case we flew into the downdraft.
• We abandoned the approach and went around ____. → … and went around early, before the dangerous area.
• We asked to hold clear of ____. → We asked to hold clear of the weather.
• Once ____ had cleared, we ____. → Once the warning had cleared, we made a normal approach.

오늘의 표현 포인트 — "We decided not to continue, in case we flew into the downdraft." 나쁜 일에 대비해 미리 안전하게 결정했다는 틀. 좋은 판단을 보여줍니다.

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7. Common Mistakes → Better Phrasing

한국인이 자주 쓰는 틀리거나 약한 표현을, 시험에서 통하는 표현으로 바꿔 익히세요.

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8. Grammar Point — Precaution (in case)

"~할까 봐 / ~할 경우에 대비해" 미리 안전하게 행동한 것은 in case로 말합니다.

• We went around in case we flew into the microburst.
• We held clear in case the cell was still over the runway.
• We kept extra fuel in case we had to divert.

핵심: in case + 주어 + 동사(현재/과거). "혹시 ~할까 봐 미리 ~했다" — 예방적 판단을 자연스럽게 표현합니다.

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9. Model Answer — Q1

"What happened to your aircraft? Explain the nature of the incident."

틀은 자유 — 무슨 일 → 어떻게 대처 → 결과 흐름이면 됩니다.

I was on approach to an airport with heavy showers nearby. As we came down, we got a predictive windshear alert, and the tower reported a microburst on the approach. A microburst is a strong, sudden downdraft, and it is one of the most dangerous things on final.

We decided not to continue, in case we flew into the downdraft. We abandoned the approach and went around early, before we reached the dangerous area.

We told ATC we were going around because of the reported microburst, and we asked to hold clear of the weather with an expected-approach time, so we could manage our fuel. They gave us a holding fix upwind and kept us updated as the cell tracked across the field. We held for a few minutes while it moved through, and we were ready to divert if it did not improve.

Once the microburst warning had cleared, we made a normal approach and landed safely. For us it was simple: you avoid a microburst — you don't try to fly through it.

10. Model Answer — Q2

"How do you think ATC handled the situation? Could it have been handled differently?"

Q2 = ATC 평가로 의견 표현을 익히는 자리. 아래는 한 예시 — 외워서 그대로 쓰지 말고, 시작·마무리 표현은 자유롭게 바꿔 보세요.

Credit to ATC — they handled it well. The tower gave us a clear microburst report, which made our decision to go around easy, and when we asked to hold they gave us a fix upwind of the cell with an expected-approach time, so we could plan our fuel. They kept updating us as the cell moved, so we knew when it was safe to try again.

The only improvement I can think of is timing — that microburst report at the approach-control stage, before we started down, would have let us plan the hold in advance. On balance, their reports and quick holding clearance backed up a safe decision.

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11. Follow-up Q&A

1. Why avoid a microburst instead of using the escape maneuver? → A microburst is extremely dangerous, so if we have warning, the safest choice is not to enter it at all — we go around or hold before reaching it.
2. What told you about the microburst? → A predictive windshear alert from our equipment, plus the tower's report on the approach.
3. Why did you hold? → To stay clear of the weather while the cell moved through, instead of forcing an approach into it.
4. When did you continue? → Only once the microburst warning had cleared and the approach was safe.

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12. Shadowing Sentences

각 문장을 3~5번 소리 내어 따라 하세요.

1. As we came down, we got a predictive windshear alert.
2. The tower reported a microburst on the approach.
3. A microburst is a strong, sudden downdraft.
4. We decided not to continue, in case we flew into the downdraft.
5. We abandoned the approach and went around early.
6. We told ATC we were going around because of a microburst.
7. We asked to hold clear of the weather.
8. We were ready to divert if it did not improve.
9. Once the warning had cleared, we made a normal approach.
10. Avoiding the microburst was the whole decision.

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다 읽었으면, 위 문장 구조 몇 개를 골라 30초만 직접 말해보세요. 화면에서 녹음하고 ICAO 6영역 채점을 받아보고 싶다면 EPTA Coach에서 1회차를 무료로 열어둡니다.