Turbulence Forecast Blog » Turbulence

Qantas flight QF68 invovled in severe turbulence Hong Kong to Perth

tb_neg — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 02:34:49 +0000

A Qantas flight from Hong Kong to Perth experienced severe turbulence, (QF68). Of note, the aircraft involved in the incident is an Airbus A330, although Qantas does not believe the A330 being a factor.

Article 1 and Article 2 (thank you Paul!).

Turbulence leaves woman paralyzed

tb_neg — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 21:36:08 +0000

Article

A woman was paralyzed this weekend when severe turbulence struck her Continental Airlines flight en route from Houston to McAllen, officials said.
The woman, 47, sustained a fractured neck early Saturday when she was thrown against the ceiling while in the bathroom of Continental Flight 511, the Associated Press reported.

This is a very unfortunate accident. Please remember to remain seated with seat belt fastened at all times on a plane, even if a flight seems smooth.

Delta and Northwest to merge, turbulent rides ahead?

tb_neg — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 23:29:21 +0000

In our discussion forums is an interesting thread about two different flights. One, operated by Delta, flew through some decent moderate turbulence. Another, operated by Northwest, stayed low and dodged most of the turbulence. Which flying personality will prevail in a Delta/Northwest merger? Will it be Northwest’s turbulence adverse strategy, or will that die with the Northwest name? See the thread for details.

Merger details.

Hate turbulence? Flying to be smoother in 2011.

tb_neg — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:50:10 +0000

Article

A fascinating article about upcoming improvements in turbulence prediction and information. In the meantime, rely on Turbulence Forecast to give you the information you need!

New turbulence analysis software designed by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) maps patches of rough air and compares the maps against the real-time flight paths of airliners. Alerts are sent to pilots giving them advance notice and presenting alternative routes that enable pilots to thread paths between turbulent regions without changing their arrival times. This should not only result in smoother flights but also save fuel and reduce delays on the ground.

“Last summer when we started testing the current system, we estimated that we could detect 80 percent of moderate-or-greater regions of turbulence,” said NCAR scientist John Williams. “Since then we have improved the system further, so we expect to get even better results when we analyze the data next month.”

If the results are as good as expected, the program will be expanded to other United flights and, eventually, to other airlines. 2011 is slated as the first year for nationwide turbulence “nowcasts” to all airliners flying over the United States.

Two planes hit extreme turbulence over North Carolina

tb_neg — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 20:56:12 +0000

Two pilot reports of turbulence came over the data source today which indicate a very rare, but extremely rough ride, over North Carolina.

PIREP 19:15Z 04/28/08
CLT UUA /OV CLT360030/TM 1915/FL160/TP B737/TB EXTRM 140-160/RM CWSU ZTL

PIREP 20:05Z 04/28/08
GSO UUA /OV GSO240020/TM 2005/FL310/TP B717/TB EXTRM 310-290/RM MOD TURB AT FL290 LGT AT FL270

This is the most intense level of turbulence reported.

United Flight 1427 hits severe turbulence, 2 injured, out of Denver

tb_neg — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:48:45 +0000

United Flight 1427 hit severe turbulence out of DEN and turned around to land.

CBS4Denver has the details. Please buckle up at all times, especially in the mountain areas.

And here is the Pilot Report of Turbulence from that flight, it must have been quite a ride. According to the report, the aircraft’s altitude varied by 1800 feet in the course of a minute.

DEN UA /OV ALS030060/TM 0625/FL370/TP A320/TB SEVERE TURB/ SEVERE MTN WAVE/RM ± 1800 FPM

Thank you to Chris Sloan from the Airchive for sending this in.

Lufthansa A320 scrapes wing in strong, turbulent crosswind landing.

tb_neg — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 01:23:47 +0000

Be sure to watch this incredible video of a Lufthansa A320 attempting to land in a strong cross wind on March 1st. Fortunately, there were no injuries and the plane is back in service.

Full Article.

Rough day for an unfortunate Gulfstream pilot

tb_neg — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 02:44:13 +0000

PIREP 01:29Z 02/08/08
PVU UUA /OV PVU /TM 0129 /FL190 /TP GLF5 /SK OVC090-TOP190 /TB MOD-SEV 120-190 /RM DURC WORST IN 20 YRS

Some days, it’s just a really nasty day to fly. This report came from over Utah.

Severe turbulence injures one on Southwest flight

tb_neg — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 02:42:22 +0000

PIREP 01:48Z 02/08/08
ABQ UUA /OV ABQ005025/TM 0148/FL300/TP B737/TB SEV 300/RM 1 INJURY AWC-WEBSWA

Hot off the pilot reports of turbulence, an injury due to severe turbulence on a Southwest flight occurred over New Mexico.

B52 reports moderate-severe turbulence over Oklahoma

tb_neg — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 20:56:53 +0000

PIREP 20:26Z 02/07/08
FYV UUA /OV 20W RZC/TM 2026/FL210/TP B52/TB MOD-SEVERE TURB/RM ZME

It’s not every day that you see a pilot report of turbulence from such a formidable plane. Today though, is one of those days.