Search the Internet for pertinent information that discusses how severe weather

Question

Search the Internet for pertinent information that discusses how severe weather can impact air transport operations.

Write a 250-word summary describing the different types of weather that falls into the severe weather category and FAA rules that provide guidelines for flight activity. Some subjects to consider are icing conditions (both runway and aircraft), thunderstorm activity, turbulence, high winds, snow, and other related items.

Post the URL of the website you selected along your summary as a reply to this forum.

It is important that you convey to your peers how the website relates to the Learning Objective and why it will be a valuable resources for them in the future.

Explanation / Answer

The main cause of air traffic delay in the National Air transport System is weather. Severe weather which cause hazards to National Air transport System are mainly thunderstorms with rigorous turbulence, powerful updrafts and downdrafts, lightning, hail, tremondous precipitation, icing, wind shear, microbursts, powerful low-level winds, and tornadoes.

Mainly all thunderstorms are hazard to aviation. These hazards take place in several combination.

Tornadoes:- The most aggressive thunderstorms draw air into their bases with great force. If the incoming air has any rotating motion, it generally creats a tremendous vortex from the surface into the cloud. The strong winds collect dust and debris, and the low pressure in the centre produce a funnel-shaped cloud expanding downward from the cumulonimbus base. If it does not touch the surface, it is a funnel cloud; if it touches the land surface, it is called tornado; and if it reaches water surface, it is known as waterspout.

Turbulence:- All thunderstorms have hazardous turbulence, and these can destroy an aircraft. Strongest turbulence occurs between the updrafts and downdrafts.

Icing:- Updrafts in the thunderstorm cause plentiful liquid water with moderately large droplet sizes. When carried above the freezing level, the water is converted into super cooled and as the upward air cools to a temperature of around -15oC, it create ice crystals. It is very dangerous to Air-traffic System.

More than safety, this convective weather causes a problem for the efficient operation of the Air traffic System. Thunderstorms and associated events may close airports, decrease airport capacities for acceptance and departure, and delay or stop ground operations. Convective hazards en route is the rerouting and diversions which results in large operating costs and lost passenger time.

Awareness of thunderstorms and the related risks is critical to the safety of flight. For a thunderstorm to form, the air should contain adequate water vapor, an unstable lapse rate, and an initial upward forcing. The life cycle of a thunderstorm progresses through three stages: the cumulus stage, the mature stage and the dissipating stage.

In-flight icing is also a causal factor in around 11 percent of all weather-related accidents among general aviation aircraft. It is not only dangerous, but also causes a large impact on the efficiency of flight operations. Rerouting and techniques to avoid icing conditions causes late arrivals and result in a ripple effect throughout the National Air Transport System. Diversions and en route lead to the requirement of additional fuel and other costs.

Federal Aviation Administration Safety rules –Thunderstorm activity

Never observe any thunderstorm carelessly. Avoiding thunderstorms is the best method.

Following are some dos and don’ts of thunderstorm avoidance:

(1) Don’t land or takeoff when approaching a thunderstorm. A sudden gust front of low-level turbulence may cause loss of control.

(2) Don’t effort to fly under a thunderstorm still if you can see through to the other side. Turbulence and wind shear under the storm may be hazardous.

(3) Don’t attempt to fly under the anvil of a thunderstorm. There is a possibility for severe and extreme air turbulence.

(4) Don’t fly without airborne radar into a cloud containing scattered surrounded thunderstorms.

(5) Don’t belief the visual appearance to be good indicator of the turbulence inside a thunderstorm.

(6) Don’t imagine that Air Traffic Control will offer radar navigation guidance or deviation around the thunderstorm.

(7) Don’t use data linked weather as the one and only means for a path through a thunderstorm area.

References:

https://www.faa.gov/documentlibrary/media/advisory_circular/ac%2000-24c.pdf

http://www.faa.gov/documentlibrary/media/advisory_circular/ac%2000-6a%20chap%2010-12.pdf

http://climate.dot.gov/documents/workshop1002/kulesa.pdf

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