Originally Posted by
CPH-Flyer
Tell me how someone looking out of their window in Meguro, understands the nature of the storm in Haneda better than the people equipped with weather radars covering the relevant areas in and around Haneda, and actually being present in the relevant area?
Since the TRACON building would be filled with electronic equipment that is essential for safe operations at the airport, you would expect that like an aircraft it was built in way that does would not put it at risk in weather situations, and secured by lightning rods in manners that put neither equipment nor people at risk from a lightning strike. If it is built so that the equipment attacks lightning as you suggest, then that is a massive engineering fail. The Toronamon Hills Station Tower and Tokyo Tower had several massive lightning strikes, the lights in and on them did not even flicker. You'd expect a TRACON facility to be of the same or better standard.
With experience of a number of typhoons affecting my departures and arrivals in my home airports in Tokyo and in Okinawa, and my experience of a number of hurricanes affecting my departures and arrivals in US airports, I would be of the opinion that the US is pretty poor at predicting and managing weather impacts, and I'd put for more trust in the operations to be managed the Japanese way.
Oh dear. Now this is just getting silly, er, absurd. I went out and looked at the storm a number of times, not just from the window, and I too, like anyone else, have access to radar images of weather. Very easy to see what is going on with reasonable accuracy. Not perfect, but certainly sufficient to estimate the response appropriateness.
The TRACON building in Chicago was built 74 years ago, rather somewhat before modern technology. Was the structure up to the challenge the storm presented? I do not know, but I can hazard a very educated guess. Is the building sufficiently grounded?? I would expect so as this an be easily retrofitted. Is the equipment in a protected (from weather, earthquakes, floods, etc.) location? I doubt it as the building would not need to be as tall as it is.
Tokyo Tower is such a poor example I will not even address it, but Station Tower is a good one. Do you know where the electronics systems are located in the building? On what floor in general? Do you know what systems are on place should the Tokyo power grid go down? Here is the thing. I do. Completely. With that knowledge, to compare a building which opened in 2023 to a building completed in 1950 to the very different standards of buildings in the US and Japan, or to suggest that the latter would be of a higher standard than the former, demonstrates a significant lack of understanding of the examples offered. I appreciate the intention, but without the knowledge it just comes across as a typical armchair quarterback.
With the proffered anecdotal evidence giving rise to a greater sense of personal security provided by things done here, might I suggest that rather than trying to pick at others' statements, an argument might be offered as to why specifically the actions taken here that day were the best? Specifically though, based on actual knowledge and experience, not just because the "people equipped with weather radars covering the relevant areas in and around Haneda" say so.