Crossing The Streams

All pilots and controllers know about wake turbulence, the vortices streaming out and downward from an airplanes wingtips anytime its generating lift. We know theyre strongest when the generating airplane is heavy, clean and slow. We know not to fly in-trail of a larger airplane at the same altitude unless there are at least three minutes separation, preferably more.

Editorial Staff

Monday, June 29, 2015 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Wake turbulence is a severe aviation hazard that can lead to loss of control and structural failure, particularly for smaller aircraft encountering the wake of larger jets.
A 2013 fatal accident involving a Piper Arrow confirmed that crossing an MD-80's wake, even at a perceived "safe" right angle, can be extremely hazardous and result in an in-flight breakup.
The incident highlighted a dangerous misconception among both pilots and air traffic controllers regarding the safety of right-angle wake crossings, underscoring the critical need for explicit advisories and strict adherence to separation standards.

See a mistake? Contact us.

All pilots and controllers know about wake turbulence, the vortices streaming out and downward from an airplane’s wingtips anytime it’s generating lift. We know they’re strongest when the generating airplane is heavy, clean and slow. We know not to fly in-trail of a larger airplane at the same altitude unless there are at least three minutes’ separation, preferably more.

We know to land beyond a preceding large airplane’s touchdown point and lift off before where it rotated. We know to either outclimb it—good luck with that in most personal airplanes—or turn away from a departing jet’s wake as soon as possible after takeoff. We also know that surface winds can blow a wake vortex back onto the runway and leave it there, just for us.