Catastrophic airplane turbulence is only getting worse go inside the billion-dollar race to solve it
On Friday, Oct.9, severe turbulence hit New York-bound Avianca Flight 42.
The Airbus A320 dropped 25,000 feet in a matter of minutes and at least nine people onboard were hospitalized.It’s not in your imagination: extreme turbulence is on the rise.But a handful of tech companies are developing ingenious technologies to help pilots escape these terrifying bumps.Violent turbulence is happening more often for a simple reason.“We’re outputting more energy…we’re stirring up the atmosphere,” said Dr.
Paul Williams, a professor of atmospheric science and head of the department of meteorology at the University of Reading.“No part of the planet is immune.”Williams cites a report in one of the world’s leading geophysical journals that found there’s 55% more turbulence over the North Atlantic today than in the 1970s and 44% more above America.“That’s pretty catastrophic,” Williams said.The solutions to counter these emergencies range from high to low tech.
One startup, the aptly named Turbulence Solutions, is developing a system of computerized “flaplets” that can be added to an airplane’s wings.The system reads wind conditions in real time and adjusts the wings’ shape accordingly, allowing the plane to ride with turbulence rather than fight against it.“If you’re driving a car, you can look up the street to see [where the potholes are] and prepare for them,” said Andras Galffy, the company’s CEO.
“We make turbulence visible, then [provide the technology] to counter the motion.”Even the smallest planes that Turbulence Solutions works on fly at over 100 miles per hour.That leaves only about two milliseconds — or .002 seconds — for the wings to adjust.The technology has proven effective on two-seater planes.
Galffy said he expects certification on “puddle jumpers” by 2028 and airliners by 2040.Customers who cannot wait that long can look to AI.Companies such as SkyPath are developing AI-powered weather-mapping software t...