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Turbulence can affect aircraft up to 55 miles from thunderstorms, a distance that exceeds the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) current guideline of 20 miles. This new finding may lead to updates in aviation safety standards. The research, published in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, analyzed data from 200 million turbulence measurements collected between 2009 and 2017 over US airspace.
Dr. Stacey Hitchcock from the University of Oklahoma commented on the findings, noting that "the probability of turbulence is still significantly above average up to 55 miles away from the storm." Current FAA guidelines require pilots to maintain a distance of at least 20 horizontal miles from thunderstorms. The study highlights that flying within three miles of a thunderstorm increases severe turbulence risk by nearly 20 times.
Recent incidents underline the importance of these findings. A Lufthansa Boeing 747-8 encountered turbulent weather on a flight from Buenos Aires to Frankfurt, resulting in minor injuries to five passengers and six crew members. Another case involved an American Airlines flight returning to São Paulo after severe turbulence caused multiple injuries.
