Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/06/18/video-of-violent-turbulence-on.html
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I hear Ryanair charges extra for this sort of thing.
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Between this and the Air Malaysia story, I hope no one who is afraid to fly plans on traveling soon…
Though one should remember I don’t believe turbulence has ever brought a plane down. It’s like a bus hitting a big pot hole. That was a hell of a drop, though.
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That would have been so much better if he had come out blue.
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On a related note, Boeing says they would like to reduce the amount of real-world physical testing they do on their aircraft, because computer simulations will get the job done better and more cheaply. Specifically, they would like to eliminate tests where they stress the wings or violently shake the airframe.
Yes, that Boeing.
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People frequently make the dumb observation “what good is a seatbelt going to do if the plane crashes?” It’s not for that. It’s for this.
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I thought this was another fart joke, boy was I surprised.
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Apparently, some people got their in-flight beverage served early.
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Apparently it was an issue in early aviation, with the last such incident happening in the '60s. Modern planes are designed to withstand greater forces, apparently, and they’re better at recognizing and avoiding extreme turbulence in the first place. Given the number of flights in the last 50-odd years, and how even the most freakishly unlikely events have brought down a few planes in that time, I’d say it’s not something passengers need to worry about anymore. (But I suspect the people worried about it aren’t aware it was ever dangerous, but are just reacting to the violence of the event.)
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Party foul.
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My father flew transport planes for the military for almost his whole career. His one piece of advice? Always wear your seat-belt.
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Yep, I have utmost faith in the fundamental strength of modern airliners. I treat turbulence like a theme park ride. I really try to enjoy it. Heavy things like drinks carts and other people flying through the air make it less fun.
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I detest turbulence. Flopsweats galore. But I’d prefer a single beverage-cart-flipping jolt than 5 minutes of subtle rolling awfulness.
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Medical device manufacturers would love to do that too. “Why do costly clinical trials when the Computer Simulation™ can tell us everything!”
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One of my CS professors liked to say, “simulations are doomed to succeed.”
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I try to remember that this type of turbulence is a thing, in those rare circumstances I quickly use the restroom when the seatbelt light is on.
Worst I ever experienced on a commercial flight was when we went through another plane’s wake, and dropped quite a bit very suddenly. It was quick, but quite a jolt.
Now, back when I was taking helicopter lessons, we would do things a lot crazier than this intentionally, as part of training. Autorotations are pretty intense, but settling with power? That’s a whoooole other ball of wax. One of the most exhilarating (and fun) things I will ever do in this life, probably.
In an R-22, settling with power is like falling out of the sky backwards like you’re on a roller coaster with no track, a few thousand feet above the ground, in a thing slightly larger than a riding lawnmower. It’s pretty awesome!
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A retired Boeing engineer said the “testing” is drifting from learning previously unknown things about the planes to confirming what they already think they know.
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