How a plane gets caught in a whirlpool. What is an air hole? Air funnels over various types of terrain

To the question "What is" air pockets"which planes get into when flying? given by the author *@ Catherine @ * the best answer is Thermal - rising air currents in the Earth's atmosphere caused by heating of the surface layer of air under the influence of the rays of the Sun or other factors.
As you know from a school physics course, air expands when heated, while maintaining its mass. At the same time, the air density decreases and the heated air rises upward under the influence of the Archimedean force. The sun's rays passing through the air are partially absorbed by the molecules that make up the air. As a result of this absorption, the air heats up, but the magnitude of this heating cannot be compared with the heating of the Earth's surface by the sun's rays. The darker the surface, the more sunlight it will absorb, and the hotter it will become. Therefore, arable land and asphalt roads heat up the most, rocks and buildings heat up a little less, and forest and water heat up much less. Snow and ice practically do not heat up, reflecting almost all sunlight.
The following picture emerges: the sun's rays heat the surface of the Earth, the surface of the Earth heats the ground layer of air, the heated layer of air rises, cold air flows in to replace the heated air, and everything repeats. But the surface of the Earth is not uniform and it heats up differently, and accordingly the air heats up differently - somewhere stronger, somewhere weaker. Warmer air rises faster and forms an area updraft.
In the morning, when the first rays of the sun heat up an area of ​​the Earth's surface with greater absorption capacity, for example a rock in a field, the layer of air around it begins to heat up. After some time, this part of the air will fly up in the form of a bubble of warm air. Its shape is exactly like an air bubble in water floating up.
When the sun has warmed up an area of ​​the Earth well, the air begins to warm up very quickly and air bubbles merge into one continuous stream of air directed upward. The result is an invisible pipe in which the air rises to a height of several hundred meters to several kilometers. At this altitude, the air is much colder than near the ground, and the rising warm air, mixing with the cold air, quickly cools down. This causes the formation of fog - the condensation of water vapor, which we see as a cloud appearing in a clear sky.
Air that has cooled at altitude loses its buoyancy and begins to sink down, forming an annular layer of descending air around the rising air flow. Having descended, the cold air heats up again. The result was an air pump solar energy, pumping air from the ground up and back. Moreover, it works even after sunset, as long as the area of ​​the earth remains heated.
This phenomenon, based on the phenomenon of air convection, is called THERMIC in aviation. When an aircraft hits a thermal, the aircraft experiences aerodynamic forces that create overload. Passengers perceive this overload as up and down shocks, which they explain by the presence of “air pockets” in the air.
Birds and glider pilots use thermals as a kind of elevator, lifting them upward without wasting energy. To do this, you just need to find an invisible stream of air in the air, determine where its center is and begin to circle around this invisible center of the stream.

The moments that the passengers of the Moscow-Bangkok flight had to endure can be called, without exaggeration, terrible. The plane is trapped - what pilots call "turbulence" clear skies" Fractures, injuries - people had the feeling that the plane began to fall. 27 people were injured, 15 of them remain in Bangkok hospitals.

The first minutes after the shaking. There is a terrible picture in the cabin of the plane. Bloodied passengers lie in the aisles and sit at emergency exits. Many are asked not to get up - it is unknown how serious the injuries are. As it turns out later, there were fractures and severe bruises.

“On one side there was a woman lying, moaning, she was in a lot of pain. And the man moaned. He was apparently in doubly pain. The girl, when it was all over, walked around the salon, she had a black eye, her cheek was all torn. There were many such people who suffered greatly. Almost no one was wearing a seat belt or had time to do so,” says passenger Elena Tregubets.

The plane had not yet begun its descent, so the “Fasten seat belts” sign was not on. People calmly walked around the cabin - warming up in the aisles after a nine-hour flight. The Moscow-Bangkok flight was coming to an end. 40 minutes before landing - sharp shocks. The 300-ton Boeing 777 fell almost 250 meters into the air pocket.

“We were rocked two or three times. And somehow I immediately intuitively began to buckle up. And literally a couple of seconds, and it was as if we began to fall. And the passengers flew up to the ceiling, and with a roar they all fell down,” says Elena Tregubets.

Doctors met the plane at the airport. In total there were 313 people on board. 27 - among them both Russians and foreigners - were immediately sent to a local hospital. There, some victims had to undergo operations. Embassy staff and a translator were sent to the hospital to help the Russians.

The weather in the skies over Thailand did not promise anything bad. According to experts, the plane encountered so-called clear-air turbulence.

“It does not appear in the clouds, but in a clear sky with good visibility. And it is not recorded by instruments. The main danger is that the crew has no way to warn passengers about the need to buckle up. This situation is extremely dangerous for passengers who do not fasten their seat belts,” Aeroflot explained.

Such chatter also happens in the skies over Russia, but much weaker than in tropical latitudes.

“In tropical latitudes it is more developed and is characterized by very large gradients, that is, power and unpredictability. It was impossible to avoid this. Although we must keep our eyes open,” the commander of the aviation squadron, pilot Sergei Matrosov, comments on the situation.

Ideally, you need to be buckled up for the entire flight, like the crew of this flight. Job description. At the helm was experienced pilot Alexander Ruzov, with over 23 thousand flight hours. Co-pilot Artem Unanov - more than 10 thousand flight hours. They took the car out of the turbulence zone and landed it in normal mode. According to them, the shaking intensified due to the actions of the autopilot.

“The autopilot was unable to react correctly in time, which is why the plane was thrown like that. Therefore, after hitting an air pocket, we turned off the autopilot and smoothly brought the plane into horizontal, level flight,” said Alexander Ruzov.

Travelers noted the work of the flight attendants. They provided assistance and did everything to avoid panic. Although they themselves got it pretty bad.

“It was clear from them that they were injured, they were also scratched, they were also not ready for this. They gave painkillers to those who were very seriously injured and applied tourniquets,” says Elena Tregubets.

Similar cases in civil aviation- Not unusual. Every year, almost 750 such incidents are recorded around the world. 30 people were injured on an Etihad Airways flight from Abu Dhabi to Jakarta. And this is footage from the flight from Lima to Buenos Aires - even the crew members got it. But perhaps the loudest incident is in the skies over Hong Kong. In August 2013, two airliners entered the turbulence zone at once. One of the passengers then hit the plastic trim of the cabin with his head. More than fifty people were taken to hospitals.

Passengers on the Moscow-Bangkok flight continue to receive assistance in Thai clinics. Their lives are not in danger. Opened for relatives hotline- by calling +66904033645 you can find out all the latest information about the condition of the victims. Meanwhile, it became known that all victims will receive compensation. In addition, they will be paid for treatment, re-issuance of tickets and hotels.

At the same time, after landing, airport services checked the Boeing itself, which had fallen into an air pocket. No damage was found. The plane immediately flew back to Moscow.

19.02.2018, 12:56

When moving on the ground, most people feel calm and confident. Having noticed a hole on the road, you can estimate its size, depth, predict the danger it poses, and accept necessary measures precautions. In the air the situation is different, people are worried. Air pockets during flight seem to be the most frightening, since the unknown and lack of control over the situation are the main factors of fear. What kind of phenomenon are air pockets, where do they come from, their features and how deep can you fall into them we will tell you in more detail. Turbulence

Passengers get scared when the plane suddenly starts tossing and shaking - this physical phenomenon called turbulence. She is absolutely harmless. There are different types of turbulence. When the aircraft passes through some types of clouds, a slight shaking may be felt. These are air pockets. These phenomena are absolutely harmless. Accumulations of thunderclouds can subject the airliner to more severe stress. However, such zones are easily detected by a locator. The pilot will not fly into an area with thunderclouds, he will try to go around them. Before each flight, the pilot must undergo a briefing and learn the weather report. Also others aircraft They talk over the radio about the roughness zones, as the pilots call air pockets and turbulence among themselves, and the crew makes adjustments to the route.

How does the professionalism of the crew affect the comfort of the flight?

Shaking and its severity do not depend on the skill, experience or qualifications of the pilot. The majority of the flight is piloted by an autopilot. The size and speed of the aircraft can affect the strength of the bump. This way, passengers on large airliners experience less turbulence and air pockets.

Should we be afraid of air pockets and turbulence zones?

The influence of turbulence and air pockets must be taken into account when designing aircraft. The aircraft design successfully copes with loads of this kind. Therefore, despite the unpleasant sensations, the described phenomena are not dangerous for people on board.

Precautionary measures

Turbulence and air pockets in an airplane are not dangerous. Despite the roughness and loss of altitude, all technical systems of the vessel will operate as normal. However, during shaking, people can lose their balance, fall, and get injured. This is the main threat posed by holes in the air. Therefore, it is very important to follow safety precautions and follow the crew’s commands. Be sure to follow the instructions “Return to your seat” and “Fasten your seat belts.” Stay in your seat while chattering. These simple precautions will help avoid problems.

When an airplane hits an air pocket, the passenger feels as if the plane is falling. In fact, this is a deception of your own body; in reality, the plane moves less than a meter. The feeling of deep failure arises due to the fact that the human vestibular apparatus is not adapted to flight and cannot respond correctly. Also, because of the speed, all movements are felt especially strongly, for example, crossing a speed bump is felt differently at a speed of 10 and 80 km/h. That is, the size of the obstacle does not change, the speed changes, and it changes the sensations.

Summing up

When preparing to fly, remember that modern airplanes are... safe transport. Their design takes into account all possible external loads. Therefore, you should not be afraid of shaking. Air pockets and turbulent flows are natural, widespread phenomena that do not pose the slightest threat to the airliner and the health of passengers.

As a result of a violation of the normal conditions of air flow around the wing (flow separation from the wing).

Under conditions of normal air flow around the wing, sufficient lift is created and the aircraft behaves stably. If the normal flow around the wing is disrupted, the lift force drops sharply and the plane “falls out of the flow” - spontaneously changes pitch and roll angles (lowers/raises the nose, tilts sideways). A stall is likely to turn into a spin.

A stall is caused by exceeding the maximum permissible angles of attack, which can occur as a result of a drop in aircraft speed, operation of the rudders, changes in the density and direction of air flow, etc. The stall effect is used when performing aerobatic maneuvers on sports and military aircraft. In civil aviation, stalling is classified as an emergency and measures are taken to avoid it (special wing design, AUASP alarm, warning shaking of the steering wheel, etc.).

In the non-professional environment, stalling is better known as an “air pocket.”

Links

Wikimedia Foundation.

2010.

    See what “Air pocket” is in other dictionaries: A sharp drop in securities prices after a negative information message. In English: Air pocket See also: Information asymmetry Financial Dictionary Finam...

    Financial Dictionary English air pocket a sharp drop in securities prices after a negative message of a non-economic nature. Dictionary of business terms. Akademik.ru. 2001 ...

    Dictionary of business terms

    - (Pocket air, air lock) a term to designate the supposed pits in which a sudden downward fall of the aircraft is observed, independent of the control of the aircraft. In fact, this fall is explained by vertical air currents, ... ... Marine Dictionary air pocket - - [A.S. Goldberg. English-Russian energy dictionary. 2006] Energy topics in general EN downdraftDD ...

    - (Pocket air, air lock) a term to designate the supposed pits in which a sudden downward fall of the aircraft is observed, independent of the control of the aircraft. In fact, this fall is explained by vertical air currents, ... ... Marine Dictionary Technical Translator's Guide - A sharp change in air density, causing an unexpected throw of the aircraft in flight...

    Dictionary of Geography - (English air pocket) (slang) a sharp drop in securities prices after an information message of a negative non-economic, for example political, nature...

    Encyclopedic Dictionary of Economics and Law Jarg. exchanges. An unstable position in which stock values ​​find themselves with a sudden drop in their value. BS, 32. /i> From aviation terminology...

    Large dictionary of Russian sayings- A stock whose price tends to fall sharply as a result of negative information appearing in the market, for example about an expected decrease in the yield of securities. Shareholders seek to free themselves from compromised securities and find... ... Financial and investment explanatory dictionary

    PIT, pits, women. 1. A depression dug or formed in the ground. “A deep hole was dug with a spade.” I.Nikitin. Potato pit (for storing potatoes). Coal pit (for burning charcoal). Garbage pit. Cesspool. 2. Specially... ... Ushakov's Explanatory Dictionary

    Noun, g., used. compare often Morphology: (no) what? pits, why? hole, (see) what? hole, what? pit, what about? about the pit; pl. What? pits, (no) what? yum, what? Yamam, (see) what? pits, what? pits, about what? about pits 1. A pit is a large depression in the ground. Deep,... ... Dmitriev's Explanatory Dictionary

In this article we will look at why a plane can get into a bumpy situation and how turbulence differs from air pockets.

Turbulence and the plane getting into an air pocket are not the most pleasant moments of the flight, but they are remembered for a long time. When it hits an air pocket, the plane drops sharply several meters down. At this point, passengers can experience free flight, just like astronauts. It just doesn’t last long, usually no more than a second. The feeling of an airplane falling into an air pocket can be compared to the fact that while walking, taking the next step, you did not notice that the surface of the earth was lower.

Illustration for the description of the comparison of the air pocket


This occurs due to the difference in density and speed of air flows. An airplane flying over the boundary between fast and slow flow runs the risk of falling into an air pocket (see picture below).

Airplane hitting air pocket


Turbulence is disordered air flows, the same “bumpiness”. Erratic - because they often change their flow direction and this may be due to several factors:
  • Change atmospheric pressure
  • Different temperatures of encountered air masses
  • Jet air flow
  • Behind the mountains, air is pushed to a height from behind the mountains (see picture)

Formation of turbulence


If you encounter turbulence, I advise you not to panic and follow all instructions of the aircraft commander and flight attendants. The situation is certainly not pleasant, but you shouldn’t be afraid of it. I wish you pleasant flights!

 

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