How dangerous is turbulence for a plane?
I will not lie, I definitely can’t say “no” and I will not. Firstly, there are completely different types of turbulence, it is one thing for the takeoff and landing; it’s over quickly, but often clear sky turbulence happens when it can “shake” for hours. Secondly, there are quite serious phenomena, such as “wind shear”, which can affect an airplane handling during takeoff and landing, even up to its loss. I do not want to alarm you, I say it as it is, in simple words, “wind shear” – it is a change of wind speed and direction over an extremely short distance. There are rules and maximum indications of wind shear, under which airplanes are forbidden to take off and land.
The most memorable turbulence incident of our time was a flight with 313 passengers on the board the plane, until the last moment many passengers thought they would crash. One of the largest Boeing 777 jet then got into “clear sky” turbulence, it does not arise in clouds, but as it is clear from its name, in a clear sky. Weather radars didn’t see it beforehand and the crew did not have time to give passengers notice of fastening their belts. As a result of a strong push, the plane was tossed 100-200 meters up. That’s why the majority of passengers of that flight flew in the salon in the truest sense of the word! About 10 passengers had to be hospitalized, many had fractures, some required surgery, but the main thing was that all survived and the aircraft itself was not damaged!
Although wind flows hardly can damage a plane, treat a commander’s and flight attendants’ request to fasten your seat belts always with understanding.
