Weather Hazards

Weather Hazards

            It is no secret that weather presents a challenge to most flights in aviation. You may get fortunate enough to have great weather, but no matter where you are, you’re bound to face some weather adversity. One of the greatest weather hazards are thunderstorms. While most of us know what thunderstorms do for aviation pilots, some don’t know the severity and impact it has on flight, or even the types of storms there are.


            Within these thunderstorms contain even more hazards. Some of which include icing, tornadoes, and turbulence (FAA, 2013). A concentrated vortex of wind, dust, and debris forms rapidly and can reach violent speeds. Although classified as tornadoes, these vortices must reach the ground to be named “tornado”. If not, they are known as funnel clouds, or if touching water, it’s called a waterspout.

waterspout | National Geographic Society

            These thunderstorms also present a hazard that is not discussed often: diversions and avoidance. Many of us have been victims of flight cancellation due to weather, and most of the time, it is because of thunderstorms. If it is too difficult to go around or near a thunderstorm, airplane routes will delay or even cancel, costing the aviation company money and their customer’s valuable time. Diversions around these thunderstorms can be avoided and present a small detour, but that is still costly as we all know flying isn’t cheap.

Thunderstorm chaos: Stansted-bound planes diverted to airports more than 100 miles away | UK | News | Express.co.uk

            Thunderstorms also present lightning which can also prove to be dangerous to aviation. However, lightning strikes don’t present a threat to the airplanes in the air like they do to ground personnel. Accidents involving lightning occur during ground operations very frequently and occurs often. In fact, a group called “Earth Networks Total Lightning Networks” has primary duties to notify personnel of cloud-to-ground lightning threats and potential hazards (Earth Networks, 2020). Thunderstorms are something that will never go away, and we must all be vigilant and aware of its potential damages and hazards.

Stay Ahead of the Weather | Aviation Pros

 

References

AC 00-24C - thunderstorms - federal aviation administration. (2013, February 19). Retrieved November 2, 2021, from https://www.faa.gov/documentlibrary/media/advisory_circular/ac%2000-24c.pdf.

The ultimate lightning guide for airport operations. Earth Networks. (2020, October 29). Retrieved November 2, 2021, from https://www.earthnetworks.com/the-ultimate-lightning-guide-for-airport-operations/#when-things-go-wrong.

 

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Wildlife Impact in Aviation               When it comes to environmental impact in the aviation industry, there is no question that several hazards exist. A danger that is rarely discussed but is very apparent and impactful is wildlife. Wildlife strikes are physical incursions aircraft embrace in the air by birds (FAA 2021). According to the FAA, about 49 bird strikes occur to aircraft per day, or about 18,000 annually (FAA, 2018). This is a very high, alarming number that draws attention from the FAA and the National Wildlife Strike organization.                  Bird strikes impact all aircraft, large and small. Small, propeller-driven airplanes suffer from the highest likelihood of these hazardous effects: damage to flight control surfaces, penetration of flight deck windshield, and structural damage. Larger jet-engine aircraft suffer severely from engine ingestion of the birds and damage to the pitot system. This can result in engine stall or failure a
Read more

Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982

Image
    A irport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982                               An aviation legislative act that goes unnoticed by many but impacted the flying world greatly is the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982. This act approved research, engineering, and development to improve and increase the efficiency and safety of air transport (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2016). The goal was to vastly improve safety, noise compatibility, and airport capacity. This act awarded nearly every single United States airport, large or small, money in the forms of grants if they were financially, legally, and able to perform the obligations laid out in the agreement (FAA, 2016). The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are ultimately responsible for deeming an airport company eligible for the grant.                                   This money allowed major improvements for all airports. All aspects of runways were improved, including lighting, signs, physical
Read more
Image
 Electrical Systems: The Backbone of the Airplane                          There are many vital  aircraft  systems that  are responsible for  the safe, efficient performance of flight. It is arguable that the most important system is the electrical system. Our reading states, "Most  aircraft  are equipped with either a 14- or a 28-volt direct current (DC) electrical system (Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, Ch. 7,  pg.  7-30). It  provides  electrical power to  every  system on the airplane.                           There are many components in the system that play integral jobs in ensuring proper configuration and operations, and the battery is an important one. Battery power keeps many important systems running when normal electrical voltage is not supplied (for example, during engine starts before the alternator/generator are spooled up), or even serving as a backup source of power should the electrical system completely fail and go offline. Batteries can fail in
Read more