Question
This thread has reminded me of a question I've been meaning to ask since my LAS-IAD flight last Wednesday (11/30). I was listening to Ch. 9 and they were making all of the traffic over a certain part of the Front Range decend to 290 or below. Apparently, there was a "severe mountain wave" and had caused a 737 to "lose control" of the plane. Now I know that the mountains frequently cause unstable air, but I'm unfamiliar with the term "mountain wave." Does anybody know exactly what that means? I also don't know technically what "lose control" means.
We flew through with only minor bumps, but ATC was taking this all very seriously. Anybody else hear this? Any insight?