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I want to know about - Thunderstorms |
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Many anxious flyers will claim that they have flown in or through a thunderstorm, even though civil air legislation requires pilots to remain at least 20 miles from them. This belief is a major cause of a fear of flying but it can be overcome. Thunderstorms are like any other clouds that have been formed by rising warm air. During the day the air is heated by the ground and rises. This air continues to rise until it is as cool as the surrounding air; when it reaches this level the moisture in the air is released and becomes visible and forms a cloud.
Under certain circumstances the change in temperature when this occurs means that the cloud becomes warmer than the surrounding air again and starts to rise. This is how a thundercloud develops. It is a normal fluffy cloud which continues to develop rather than reaching a steady state. The circumstances for this to occur are relatively scarce although in certain parts of the world they are more common because of the land masses or the meeting of different air flows. From the pilots point of view, the weather radar equipment in the cockpit will show the presence of thunderstorm activity from a distance of 120 miles. This means that the pilots have at least fifteen minutes to plan navigating around them. Pilots will inform air traffic control when they are deviating around thunderstorms and pilots will always inform each other of the height and the extent of any thunderstorm activity. There is no reduction in the distances that aircraft are kept apart and no question that they will violate other routes. If, when approaching a thunderstorm the wind is blowing from say left to the right then the pilot will take the aircraft to the left hand side of the storm where it will be less turbulent. At night the light from lightning flashes will be considerable and will create the impression that the storm is very close, you must remember that the contrast between the dark sky and a flash of lightning will be considerable and therefore flashes will be seen from a long way away. Sometimes you will be able to see lightning travelling across the sky. An aircraft is perfectly safe if it is struck by lightning. It will not upset the instruments or cause any problem to the engines and equipment on board. There is no chance that it will cause a fire. The damage caused to an aircraft in the vicinity of a thunderstorm is likely to be confined to hail damage to the nose cone which is unpressurised and therefore unimportant from a structural point of view. Aircraft are not allowed, by law, to fly into thunderstorms and when passing them must avoid them by at least 20 miles. |
Aircraft fly safely in the rain |
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