I checked out FlightAware because I thought it would be interesting to see flight diversions around Hurricane Helene.
What I found was a single plane seeming to cut across the hurricane’s path. All others (except a weather plane) diverted.
This plane? Frontier Airlines.
by Left_Debt_8770
20 Comments
Frontier Airlines: Ride the Lightning.
This may be the final frontier flight!
Nobody paid the “avoid storm” fee
Fitting, as this is probably the worst airlines I’ve ever flown on
Seeing this got me to thinking, because while its common knowledge how wide and powerful a hurricane is I had no idea how tall they are. So I did some digging.
I was amazed at how hard it was to find simple data on something that you wouldn’t think would be hard to find.
I ended up finding some data from Hurricane Irma, a category 5 hurricane from 2017. Because Helene is smaller I figured data from Irma would offer a margin of error.
What it looks like is that once you get over 100km from the center at 34000 feet (roughly 10km) there is essentially no wind action to speak of.
This doesn’t mean it was wise to do, although with Atlanta, Charleston and Savannah as potential diversions outside the high wind area I suppose it might have been okay. (Lay person, not a commercial pilot, just interpreting what I’m reading) and hopefully their route to Miami would have been sent out over Bimini and on down – but it was probably not at all a rough flight.
Link to the cloud height data for anyone interested
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343758231/figure/fig1/AS:953911796047878@1604441703756/Vertical-cross-sections-of-Hurricane-Irma-AL112017-for-three-different-aircraft-passes.png
Denver to Miami on Frontier sounds excruciating without the hurricane
I was on a plane that flew through a bad thunderstorm once. The turbulence was like a rollercoaster. Massive drops, people screaming. I cant imagine what flying through a hurricane is like.
I hope someone on that plane took pictures
Route is perfectly fine nothing connective. If airplanes didn’t fly through rain they would never go anywhere.
This is your uh, captain speaking, we’re turning on the seatbelt sign, radar indicates some slight turbulence ahead.
“We’ll fly you to your destination and you can evacuate from there”
I want pictures out the window of that flight
Frontier is being ridiculous. The winds are counterclockwise. Go around the other side of the storm and you save a bunch of fuel.
At cruising altitude, you are above the storm. Landing in miami might have to take a longer route out over the east coast and come back avoon the descent, but no real issue where they are at.
Its the takeoff/approach and landing that you have the big issues
Leeerrrooooyyyy Jeeennkkiiinnnnnssss
Leerooooy jenkinnnns! Lol
I flew into Raleigh, through a hurricane, on frontier a couple.yesrs back. I knew I was in for it when the Captain’s pre-flight checkin started with, “Good evening folks, I’m not gonna sugar coat it…”
okay but what about that other plane right next to the eye 😳?!
They have, like two planes. Good luck if weather is involved. You are stranded and sleeping in the airport for the next few days
You could just fly over the hurricane. It’s pretty safe up there.