Turbulence

[Meadbh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R There are many different ways to travel, and I think that these days almost any of them are preferable to flying. Ah, for the days back in the 1950's when flying was luxurious, people were pleasant and even dressed up to fly, and the experience was so much more enjoyable.

It was great, for those who could afford it.

[MichaelB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh It was great, for those who could afford it.

Yes, and not that many could. Flying today is really a misnomer, most of the time it is really long distance "very fast bus with wings" travel, with all the accoutrements and corresponding humanity. For many people it is an advantage they did not have 3 decades ago.

[braumeister]

I have more of these "extreme turbulence" stories than I like to count, but the one thing most of them have in common is that they usually took place over the North Atlantic in winter.

But I can guarantee that they all fade into relative insignificance after you've been in a plane when people were actively trying to shoot you out of the sky!

[ExFlyBoy5]

The media was out of control with the "turbulence" stories. A don't think too many people have actually experienced "extreme turbulence". That level is defined as, "Turbulence in which the aircraft is violently tossed about and is practically impossible to control. It may causes structural damage." If it's forecast or reported, almost ALL operators are prohibited from entering it; obviously with really good reason.

In the many years of flying professionally, I never experienced "severe turbulence" (as defined). Severe turbulence? A few times...and that wasn't any fun!

[Nemo2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh It was great, for those who could afford it.

I haven't done an updated comparison to see if the proportionality still applies, but in January 1963 it was cheaper for me to catch an ocean liner, (six weeks travel, all food, accommodation, plus stops in various ports), from Melbourne, Australia, across the Pacific to Southampton, England, than to fly steerage.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh As a Corkonian, I do NOT find that funny!

I think he said it to me in jest at the time. But interestingly, where I grew up and started my career in Connecticut was heavily populated by Irish and Italian immigrants. Many of the factories of the area (built around 1900 - 1920) were built in the same style as the ones I saw during that visit to Cork.

However, the manufacturing plant I was visiting in Cork was very new and modern. They were soldering up main boards for hard drives (Western Digital) and the plant was in a newer industrial park.

I really enjoyed my visit to Cork (and Ireland) at that time.

[COcheesehead]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh As a Corkonian, I do NOT find that funny!

I was just in Cork and the surrounding areas. I loved it. Nicest people on Earth.

[travelover]

I used to take DC3s out of Fort Myers down to Naples. On one run, the plane was jumping around so much that the ash trays were flying out of the arm rests into the air and nearly everyone on the plane was barfing into sick bags...or elsewhere. That was one nasty plane when we got off. Somehow I managed to keep my lunch down, though I don't know how, in retrospect.

[Another Reader]

I remember flying from SFO probably to Burbank in those as a little kid in the 50's. The attendants handed out chewing gum for the pressure changes during descent. Not that much turbulence in the sunny California skies...

ETA (off topic): I think the airlines switched to bigger planes like the DC-6, which was not a tail dragger, fairly quickly as demand increased. I think it was the DC-6 or maybe the Electra Jet where two staircases and two exits off the plane started being used.

[6miths]

Worst commercial was a DC-9 from New Orleans to Atlanta in 1988 but really minor compared to adventures flying medical transport in twin engine props in the Rockies.

[jollystomper]

August 1985. Returning home from a West Coast business trip with a connection through Dallas/Forth Worth Airport. A bumpy descent and landing, and as we taxi to the gate a massive thunderstorm hits the airport.

At the gate passengers get off, passengers get on, the door closes, and we sit there. For a while. The flight attendants seem a little strange. Then word gets out that a plane has crashed at the airport, probably occurring just after we landed.

We finally taxi and take off, and someone exclaims "OH NO..." and everyone looks out of the left side plane windows. We can clearly see the wreckage of a plane. We flew almost right over it. Smoke is still coming from it.

It was the quietest flight I ever took. When I finally landed, I called home from the airport - this was before the time of cellphones, it took me a little time to find a free payphone. DW was on the verge of hysteria, she knew I was connecting through Dallas and had saw the news of a plane crash there that was also a connecting flight, but she did not have my flight info.

The flight was Delta 191, it crashed in the storm that hit the airport just as my plane landed.

[ExFlyBoy5]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jollystomper August 1985. Returning home from a West Coast business trip with a connection through Dallas/Forth Worth Airport. A bumpy descent and landing, and as we taxi to the gate a massive thunderstorm hits the airport. At the gate passengers get off, passengers get on, the door closes, and we sit there. For a while. The flight attendants seem a little strange. Then word gets out that a plane has crashed at the airport, probably occurring just after we landed. We finally taxi and take off, and someone exclaims "OH NO..." and everyone looks out of the left side plane windows. We can clearly see the wreckage of a plane. We flew almost right over it. Smoke is still coming from it. It was the quietest flight I ever took. When I finally landed, I called home from the airport - this was before the time of cellphones, it took me a little time to find a free payphone. DW was on the verge of hysteria, she knew I was connecting through Dallas and had saw the news of a plane crash there that was also a connecting flight, but she did not have my flight info. The flight was Delta 191, it crashed in the storm that hit the airport just as my plane landed.

That exact accident and the parameters that set it into motion (wind shear on approach) is still used in simulator training. It's unfortunate so many people died, but I'm convinced that 1000s of lives have been saved by teaching crews the extreme hazards of wind shear.

[MRG]

In July '96 DW, the nervous flyer, and I went to Amsterdam. The flight was uneventful. The next morning she, uncharacteristically, grabs the USA Today and reads the headline. TWA Flight 800 went down last night. Again, she starts reading details, who is this strange woman?

There was group of 16 high school students and 5 adults on that flight headed to Paris. They were from our hometown. We grew up there, fell in love, and left 18 years earlier. We sat at the table and read names, some were names we knew. Our classmate's kids. We really didn't know what to say or do.

We did have a great time that week; the flight home was very emotional. Maybe turbulence isn't too bad?

[Bryan Barnfellow]

Not turbulence; but wanted to share. Mid 1990s, about to land in Philadelphia on a flight from Rome. We are in the glide path for landing, descending over the runway normally, when suddenly the engines kick in with an awesome roar and we are nose up and very quickly rising. Did a once around and then landed normally. No explanation offered. I would guess either the pilot realized s/he overshot or there was something on our runway down there.

-BB

[Meadbh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bryan Barnfellow Not turbulence; but wanted to share. Mid 1990s, about to land in Philadelphia on a flight from Rome. We are in the glide path for landing, descending over the runway normally, when suddenly the engines kick in with an awesome roar and we are nose up and very quickly rising. Did a once around and then landed normally. No explanation offered. I would guess either the pilot realized s/he overshot or there was something on our runway down there. -BB

Mid 2000s. Lufthansa from Frankfurt (FRA) to Berlin Tegel (TXL). Descending normally, I can clearly see details of houses, cars, people, probably 500-600 feet above ground (approaching minimums) , when the engines suddenly kick in with an awesome roar and we zoom upwards. Captain explains the goaround in German only. I ask my seat mate, who reports that the Captain said a plane was on our runway. Interestingly, on our second descent, we followed exactly the same path. I could see the same houses from the same perspective. Fortunately the runway was now clear!

Berlin was awesome.

[COcheesehead]

Similar experience landing in Denver only it was a snowplow on the runway.

Probably the most turbulent flight I have had was landing during a summer thunderstorm in Milwaukee. I literally felt my butt lift from the seat. Keep those belts low and tight.

[Idnar7]

Jollystomper, the thing I remember about that accident is that the windshear forced the plane down near a freeway and the plane's tire hit a car killing the driver. I recall the debris also flying out a day later. IIRQ it was a DC-10.

[Meadbh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Idnar7 Jollystomper, the thing I remember about that accident is that the windshear forced the plane down near a freeway and the plane's tire hit a car killing the driver. I recall the debris also flying out a day later. IIRQ it was a DC-10.

Wikipedia says it was a Lockheed L1011 Tristar. Very unnerving event!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delt...nes_Flight_191

[akck]

My first experience happened shortly after takeoff from LAX. We were rising normally and we’re passing through the clouds when we felt pressure in our ears. Suddenly, we were out of the clouds having dropped within 1,000 feet above the houses on the ground. No explanation of what happened from the flight crew. My second memorable experience was on landing approach to SEA. It got really turbulent, with us bouncing all around. One lady screamed we’re all going to die and some bags were utilized. I’ve had a missed approach due to a bear on the runway, and several missed approaches due to fog and low clouds. For the most part, I’ve been calm through all of it, as I have no control over the outcome, which has obviously been favorable.

[USA]

Cold War Era: West Berlin Air Corridor from Frankfurt to Berlin. Altitude restriction 10,000 ft. Width 20mi. in a thunderstorm. Short flight that scored Pilot: 1 ,ground: 0, tree branches seen: often.