Gate 41

Things that look scary but have an explanation

What is turbulence, really?

The plane just dropped. Are we falling?

Turbulence is bumpy air: thunderstorm updrafts, wind flowing over mountains, jet-stream shear or the wake of another aircraft. The wings meet a patch of air moving up or down and the aircraft responds. It feels dramatic, but the actual vertical movement is usually small, often just a few metres even when your stomach disagrees.

Airliners are designed and tested for loads much greater than the turbulence they are expected to meet. The real risk is to people who are not belted in. Injuries in rough air are mostly to unbuckled passengers and crew, which is why you are asked to keep your belt fastened whenever you are seated.

Pilots plan around it using forecasts, weather radar and reports from aircraft ahead, and they ask air traffic control for different altitudes or routes. Clear-air turbulence has no cloud to warn of it, so not every bump can be avoided.

A little deeper

There are several kinds: convective (storms), mechanical (wind over terrain), clear-air (shear at jet-stream edges) and wake turbulence from other aircraft. Crews slow to a published turbulence speed to reduce loads.

Research suggests some regions may see more clear-air turbulence in the future, which is one reason airlines and meteorologists keep improving forecasts and reporting.

Honest limits: severe turbulence is rare, but nobody can promise a perfectly smooth flight, and it can injure unbelted people. That is the entire point of the sign.

See it in Gate 41, in the cabin

Related questions

People involved