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Practicing Landings
Today is the anniversary of the tragic accident of Delta Flight 191, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar widebody on approach to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (KDFW) on August 2, 1985. Six minutes before the accident (6 pm CDT), the surface temperature was 101°F with the surface dewpoint temperature reported at 65°F creating a dewpoint depression of 36°F. Winds were 120° at 8 knots and the estimated ceiling was 21,000 feet with a scattered layer at 6000 ft at the airport. With a ceiling of 21,000 feet and 11 mile visibility and rather light winds, this doesn't seem like conditions for an accident waiting to happen.
Unfortunately, it was. Microbursts are frequently generated from benign-appearing cells. This was not a supercell thunderstorm, but was from high-based convection. Evaporative cooling is prevalent during these extremely dry conditions which can easily produce a wet or dry microburst. But now thanks to some new technology and a bit of awareness, we've seen a dramatic decrease in accidents related to microbursts and other low-level wind shear events.
Take some time and view this 52-minute video on this topic that I taught last year as part of my In Flight Weather Essentials live class.
Unfortunately, it was. Microbursts are frequently generated from benign-appearing cells. This was not a supercell thunderstorm, but was from high-based convection. Evaporative cooling is prevalent during these extremely dry conditions which can easily produce a wet or dry microburst. But now thanks to some new technology and a bit of awareness, we've seen a dramatic decrease in accidents related to microbursts and other low-level wind shear events.
Take some time and view this 52-minute video on this topic that I taught last year as part of my In Flight Weather Essentials live class.