Typical operating window
January–MarchCold continental winter and Black Sea moisture normally build the main snowpack from December.Verified planning context
Snow, weather and avalanche context
Historical patterns help you compare trips. They do not predict your week or replace the operator's daily decisions.
Strongest comparable snow evidence
547 mm SWE median · 502–621 mm interquartile rangeEastern Turkey reference ERA5-Land grid cellTier C · modelled estimate · low confidenceSnow character
continentalCold sheltered powder can persist. Wind slabs, rain or thaw at lower elevations, and persistent weak layers require daily assessment.Public avalanche information
MGM MeteoUYARI avalanche and weather warningsThe national warning map is broad and is not a run-level avalanche bulletin.Weather and flight context
Continental cold interacts with moist northern flow and complex high-relief terrain.
- Mountain cloud
- Strong wind
- Rapid lower-elevation snowline changes
Meteorological reference area
Eastern Turkey catalogue locations
- Includes
- Published eastern Turkey program locations.
- Excludes
- National mountain conditions outside those locations.
- Elevation
- No verified operator-terrain elevation band is public. Each evidence value retains its site elevation.
Evidence pack
Measurements, claims and gaps stay separate.
Tier CModelled snowfall water equivalent547 mm SWE median · 502–621 mm interquartile range
- Site
- Eastern Turkey reference ERA5-Land grid cell · 41.0000, 41.0000 · 4.1 km from Eastern Turkey reference reference point
- Period
- Calendar years 1991–2020
- Completeness
- 360 monthly means; all 30 calendar years contain 12 values.
- Method
- ERA5-Land monthly mean daily snowfall accumulation was multiplied by calendar days and 1,000, then summed by calendar year.
- Limitation
- This reference area supports evidence discovery and comparison. It is not an operating-area or tenure boundary. This unadjusted 0.1° reanalysis grid cell is not an observation, snow depth, or terrain-wide total. Grid elevation and wind redistribution can cause substantial local bias.
- ERA5-Land monthly averaged data from 1950 to presentCopernicus Climate Change Service · accessed 2026-08-26
Monthly evidence
Each cell keeps its measurement type and unit. Reanalysis water equivalent is not snow depth. Text-only cells preserve a representative data gap.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 121.9 mm SWE | 96.3 mm SWE | 88.7 mm SWE | 49 mm SWE | 10.2 mm SWE | 0 mm SWE | 0 mm SWE | 0 mm SWE | 0 mm SWE | 21.3 mm SWE | 63.8 mm SWE | 85.9 mm SWE |
Commercial operator assessment
Operator assessment process not independently verifiedThe operator must assess current snow, avalanche terrain, weather, aircraft limits, and rescue options. No private operational plan is inferred.
Sources and evidence notes
- WMO Climatological NormalsWorld Meteorological Organization · accessed 2026-08-25
- ERA5-Land hourly data from 1950 to presentCopernicus Climate Change Service · accessed 2026-08-25
- MeteoUYARI warning mapTurkish State Meteorological Service · accessed 2026-08-25
- Published operator and trip inventoryHeliski International editorial team · accessed 2026-08-25
- ERA5-Land monthly averaged data from 1950 to presentCopernicus Climate Change Service · accessed 2026-08-26