Thunderstorm Encounter

Stephen Pope

Wednesday, April 20, 2011 at 09:14 PM ET

Verified

While you never want to find yourself in a
thunderstorm, here's what to do to get out of
one alive.

Key Takeaways:

A student pilot's harrowing solo cross-country flight inadvertently took him into a thunderstorm, where he faced severe turbulence, lightning, and extreme downdrafts that nearly resulted in a crash, highlighting the dangers of such encounters.
The most critical lesson for pilots is to avoid thunderstorms entirely, maintaining a wide berth (e.g., 20 miles) as dangers like severe gusts and wind shear can extend far from the storm's center.
If caught inside a thunderstorm, pilots should focus on instruments, select a power setting for reduced airspeed while maintaining a constant attitude (not altitude), and fly a straight course through the storm rather than attempting turns, to minimize stress on the aircraft.

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A fellow pilot recently recounted the harrowing tale of one of his early solo cross-country flights as a student pilot that inadvertently put him where no pilot wants to be: inside the bowels of a thunderstorm.

According to the pilot, the summer haze along his route had cut the visibility to less than five miles, making it hard for him to see the storm until it was too late. Before he knew what had hit him, he was being rocked by severe turbulence as lightning flashed around him.