Turbulence Forecast Blog » Weather

Rough rides and snow in store for the Midwest

tb_neg — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 22:45:01 +0000

A major winter storm is headed towards the great lakes. With snowfalls of 12 inches expected in some areas, DTW and ORD may be slow going for connections, effecting United, American, and Northwest. Along with system, flights are experiencing moderate turbulence.

Video of undular bore found, see what Air Canada 190 felt

tb_neg — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:22:35 +0000

CrankyFlier posted a fascinating video of a undular bore, which may have caused the severe turbulence on Air Canada Flight 190, that injured 10 passengers and forced the plane to make an emergency landing to treat the passengers.

10 passengers injured on turbulent Air Canada flight

tb_neg — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 20:52:32 +0000

An Air Canada flight from Victoria to Toronto was transformed into a terrifying white-knuckle roller-coaster that saw the jet violently plunge, pitch and yaw, tossing passengers, dishes and a cart about the cabin.

Turbulence Forecast reminds you to buckle up at all times, even if the flight seems smooth. You never know when turbulence will hit.

ABC News - mentions Turbulence Forecast!
Toronto Sun Article
CNN Article

Northwest Airlines Flies Around Turbulence, While Others Rough It.

tb_neg — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:07:56 +0000

Another day, another opportunity to evaluate choices made by the airlines for passenger comfort. While no one would praise Northwest for in flight amenities, that hardly matters if the plane you are on is shaking in the mountain wave air. Right now, there are a lot of reports of moderate turbulence over Colorado, and that makes it easy to evaluate the airlines. Using FlightAware, I tracked flights who regularly fly over Colorado for the most efficient route. Comparing that route to routes taken today show a lot about which airlines care the most about your comfort.

Compare the path that Northwest 1191 takes in comparison the regular routes taken. On this graphic, NWA1191 is the green line. The regular flight path is in red. The shaded area indicates turbulence activity.

Northwest takes top prize for turbulence avoidance by flying completely around the area with a wide berth. Southwest gets a close second, as they flight a bit south of the area.

Delta does alright on some flights, flying around the area, and some fly through the area.

And the losers of this challenge: United, American, US Airways, Spirit, all flew right through. While not a safety issue, it is a comfort issue. Even if Northwest charges slightly more, consider where you spend your airfare money next time you fly, and reward the airlines that go the extra mile to ensure a smooth flight and your comfort.

Using FlightAware, take a look for yourself, the information is easy to find and easy to draw conclusions from.

Strong Winds and Mountains Equals Severe California Turbulence

tb_neg — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 20:54:12 +0000

Very strong winds over the western half of the United States today is turning the air into a severe turbulence soup. Many planes are reporting severe turbulence. When winds are strong and in the right direction, the mountains will send the turbulence up in the air, and there will be no altitude that isn’t effected.

PIREP 18:49Z 01/04/08
BNO UUA /OV REO 208040/TM 1849/FL400/TP A332/TB MOD-SEV 400-380/RM MOD MTN WAVE/ZLC

PIREP 19:43Z 01/04/08
PHX UA /OV PXR260040/TM 1943/FL240/TP B757/TB MODERATE/SEVERE

PIREP 19:45Z 01/04/08
PRC UUA /OV PXR255040/TM 1945/FL270/TP B737/TB MDT TO SEVERE

Severe Winter Storm to Cause Misery Sunday

tb_neg — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 04:20:58 +0000

A severe winter storm system will hit the great lakes and northeast on Sunday, causing many airport delays and possible flight cancellations. Airplane rides will be turbulent due to a strong jet stream and winds on the ground. Please check with your airline regarding flight status information.

Thanksgiving Weekend Travel - Minimal Turbulence

tb_neg — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 19:22:25 +0000

During the busiest travel weekend of the year, it looks like travelers will only be subject to minimal turbulence. Most flights are currently reporting only light, and a few reporting moderate. Looking forward, Turbulence Forecast expects most flights will only hit light, and a small percentage of flights will hit moderate for this travel weekend. Not a bad forecast for this time of year. Delays also appear to be minimal, but may increase for the weekend. Be sure to check with your airlines website for the latest travel information.

FAA Travel Delays Listing

Sharply Twisting Jet Stream Causes Severe Turbulence

tb_neg — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 21:05:07 +0000

Due to a sharply twisting jet stream that rushes to the north, turns around, and rushes back up north is causing a major disturbance in the air at all altitudes, causing moderate to severe turbulence for any planes in the path.

Santa Ana Winds Cause Severe Turbulence

tb_neg — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:03:20 +0000

With winds that are estimated to hit 70mph (as fast as your car drives on the freeway), planes landing and taking off at airports in the area (ONT, BUR) can expect moderate-severe turbulence from the surface to 10,000 feet. Many pilots are reporting severe turbulence, with one pilot going as far to mention in their comments that ‘Passengers should remain seated below 10,000 ft’, this coming from a Boeing 737.

USC Trojans Terrible Turbulence

tb_neg — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 21:15:49 +0000

USC’s football team recently had a rough ride to South Bend due to the weather as of late.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — USC’s football team, coaches and staff endured several terrifying minutes as their chartered flight to South Bend plummeted amid a severe thunderstorm, forcing the pilot to abort his first landing attempt.

About 125 people, including 82 players, coach Pete Carroll and most of the coaching staff faced a harrowing end to their trip across the country for Saturday’s game.

“There was a moment there when I was thinking, ‘This is it,’ ” Dennis Slutak, USC’s director of football operations, told The Los Angeles Times.

Full Article
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