Plane Answers: When are pilots afraid of turbulence?

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5-09-2008 @ 9:06PM

sheri said...

Fascinating. I also agree that if pilots got on the pa during turbulance I would feel alot better. I like pilots who let you know what's going on. I find comfort knowing they're working up there! I went through some rough turbulance between Hawaii and CA,the flight attendant dropped to her knee to keep her balance and one person screemed during a 'drop'. Not my best experience, but I realized just how much a plane could take. Can you tell me about how many feet a plane has to 'drop' for the passengers to feel it? It was kind of like a rollercoaster ride where your butt came off the seat as opposed to the usual bumps.

5-09-2008 @ 9:26PM

Kent Wien said...

Hi Sheri,

Thanks for the nice comment. I know it's always described by the media as 'the plane felt like it plummeted 200 feet' but you'd be amazed at how small an altitude change results from those bumps. It's hard to know exactly but we're probably talking +/- 10 feet.

You might want to try to get a seat closer to the front or over the wings if the turbulence really bothers you. Just as the back of the bus can have some really wild bumps, imagine what a long airliner can feel like in the aft.

I'm glad this topic has been helpful for some flyers. Turbulence can be put all the way down to #47 on the list of things to be concerned about while flying.

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