Handling Turbulence

The hangar conversation followed lines one expects on a gusty, blustery, bombastic-air day—with turbulence the topic of the moment. “As soon as Flight Service passed on that Pirep about moderate-to-heavy turbulence ahead, I slowed to VB,” explained the ATP cooling off with some colleagues after his heavy day flying a FAR 23 business jet. “Told the boss she we needed to live with slower or risk not outliving the air.”

Key Takeaways:

• Pilots must understand the distinction between VA (design maneuvering speed for abrupt control movements) and VB (design speed for maximum gust intensity) to safely navigate turbulence without overstressing the airframe.
• Published VA and VB speeds are typically valid only at an aircraft's Maximum Gross Takeoff Weight (MGTOW); as the aircraft becomes lighter during flight (e.g., due to fuel burn), its effective safe maneuvering and gust penetration speeds decrease.
• Since lighter-weight VA/VB values are rarely published for general aviation aircraft, pilots should fly slower than the published VA in turbulence when not at MGTOW, using a rule of thumb based on the aircraft's current stall speed to determine a safer operating speed.

Key takeaways sponsored by Aviator Pro | Start Your Training ->

See a mistake? Contact us.