Despite the hard work from every segment of aviation, we have to reluctantly admit that there are still unforeseeable factors that can lead to incidents and accidents. From TWA Flight 800 to Air France 447, seemingly standard missions can be hit by disaster, with flight crews left unable to respond adequately, if at all. Through the efforts of the National Transportation Safety Board (and other investigative organizations), the FAA and the industry, these accidents are getting far less common as we create new guidelines to help us steer clear of disaster.
Avoiding Turbulence
Key Takeaways:
- Turbulence encounters leading to injuries are increasing due to rapidly growing thunderstorms that often develop faster than pilots anticipate or detect.
- For high-altitude flights, pilots must adjust airborne radar tilt settings (e.g., -4 or -5 degrees downslope) to ensure early detection of storm tops and associated clear-air turbulence, allowing adequate time for avoidance.
- For low-altitude or non-radar flights, pilots need to combine current meteorological forecasts (like SPC NOAA's "AC Note") with the recognition of specific indicators (e.g., high dew point, odd echo shapes, storm clusters) to identify and avoid dangerous, fast-growing supercell thunderstorms.
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