Summary
- Due to unexpected turbulence, four crew members of American Airlines Flight 2905 were injured, but all passengers remained unharmed.
- Turbulence in clear air cannot be detected by weather radar and is therefore difficult to avoid.
- Airlines are implementing strategies to reduce turbulence-related injuries as the number of accidents appears to be increasing due to climate change.
American Airlines Flight 2905 on June 8 was eventful, but for all the wrong reasons. Unexpected turbulence injured four cabin crew members, but no other injuries were reported.
Turbulence in clear air
American Airlines Flight 2905 was a nonstop twin-engine Airbus A321 flight from Tampa International Airport (TPA) to Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT). According to local news channel WBTV, the plane encountered unexpected turbulence along its 547-mile flight path, injuring all four crew members.
Photo: Robin Guess | Shutterstock
The severity of the injuries is currently unknown. However, after the plane landed safely at its destination airport, the crew members were taken to a local hospital for further evaluation. Simple Flying has asked American Airlines for a statement on the condition of the crew members.
There were 154 passengers and six crew members on board. No other injuries were reported. The two remaining crew members are believed to be the flight crew, who are always buckled in to their seats.
American Airlines released the following statement:
“American Airlines flight 2905, serving Tampa (TPA) to Charlotte (CLT), landed safely in CLT after encountering unexpected turbulence. We thank our crew members for their professionalism and our customers for their understanding.”
The turbulence was probably clear-air turbulence, which weather radar cannot detect. CAT can only be avoided if other aircraft report it.
Debby causes delays
According to FlightAware’s Misery Map, CLT was one of the places in the U.S. with the highest delay and cancellation rates on Thursday due to Tropical Storm Debby. More than 715 flights were delayed and at least 22 were canceled.
CLT was directly in the path of the storm and had the highest cancellation and delay rates in the country. Other airports in East Coast cities, such as New York, Miami and Washington DC, also experienced delays.
There has been a significant increase in the number of injuries caused by turbulence recently, such as the accidents on Air Europa Flight 45, Qatar Airways Flight 17 and Singapore Airlines Flight 321, in which one passenger died.
Photo: The Global Guy | Shutterstock
According to a study, clear-air turbulence has increased over the past 40 years, with severe turbulence in the North Atlantic increasing by about 55%. In addition, moderate turbulence increased by 37% and light turbulence increased by 17%. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported that turbulence was the leading cause of injuries to flight attendants and passengers.
The scientific community agrees that climate change and global warming are exacerbating turbulence, that airline passengers should expect bumpier air travel and get used to seeing more frequent headlines about turbulence.
However, many airlines are introducing measures to reduce the risk of injury. For example, Korean Air changed its cabin service procedures, ending service 40 minutes before landing and no longer serving instant ramen – a customer favorite.
Emirates was the first airline to integrate the IATA Turbulence Aware Platform with Lufthansa Systems’ Lido mPilot to better predict and avoid turbulence. The system enables aircraft to automatically share turbulence information with other aircraft on the same platform, creating an information network that helps pilots identify areas of turbulence.
Related
In-flight turbulence: A pilot’s perspective
An overview of the types and intensities of turbulence and how airlines avoid bumpy flights.
