Worst turbulence experience?
Jul 1, 2010 | 7:51 am
#16
Join Date: Nov 2008
Programs: AC SE, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 1,365
As with a poster above, worst experience ever was on a Military flight rather than civil.
We were flying on a C-130 from Bagram Airbase to FOB Salerno in northern Afghanistan. For much of the flight, the aircraft flies through the valleys, rather than over the mountains (Himalayas are too high for a C-130).
At one point in the flight, I guess the pilot thought he spotted ground fire coming at us, so he started popping flares and doing "Tactical" flying. This meant that he was bucking and flopping the C-130 as hard as he could. I managed to grab my helmet as it floated up in front of me, and watched my bag fly down towards the tail of the aircraft.
I managed to keep my lunch down, but only barely.
We were flying on a C-130 from Bagram Airbase to FOB Salerno in northern Afghanistan. For much of the flight, the aircraft flies through the valleys, rather than over the mountains (Himalayas are too high for a C-130).
At one point in the flight, I guess the pilot thought he spotted ground fire coming at us, so he started popping flares and doing "Tactical" flying. This meant that he was bucking and flopping the C-130 as hard as he could. I managed to grab my helmet as it floated up in front of me, and watched my bag fly down towards the tail of the aircraft.
I managed to keep my lunch down, but only barely.
Jul 1, 2010 | 7:55 am
#17
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: RIX
Programs: AC50K, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 908
Military flight as well.
CC-130 ammo resup flight in to Kandahar with six passengers onboard. Nothing like seeing a couple of tonnes of ammo straining against the straps holding it down. I managed to keep my box lunch down, the person sitting next to me was not so lucky.
CC-130 ammo resup flight in to Kandahar with six passengers onboard. Nothing like seeing a couple of tonnes of ammo straining against the straps holding it down. I managed to keep my box lunch down, the person sitting next to me was not so lucky.
Jul 2, 2010 | 2:08 am
#19
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: YVR
Posts: 60
Lousy gut wrenching flight between PSP-LAX on United Embraer 120 bouncing off the mountain currents immediately after take off. Reminded my of the "Lost Horizons" movie.
No longer fly that UA turboprop whenever possible as we end up renting a vehicle at LAX and driving to Palm Springs instead.
No longer fly that UA turboprop whenever possible as we end up renting a vehicle at LAX and driving to Palm Springs instead.
Jul 2, 2010 | 5:45 am
#20
Join Date: Mar 2005
Programs: Air Canada Elite, Continental Gold, IC Royal Ambassador, SPG Gold
Posts: 711
Wow,. incredible experience. Wish my job had a sense of duty like that. Count yourself lucky!
This was not a commercial ride but a military flight
I was based in Greenwood NS and the rig The Ocean Ranger had capsized in severe weather.
We were flying a mission looking for survivors. I had volunteered to be a spotter. We were very low looking for rafts or anything that could help us find survivors. The turbulence was awful... barf bags were used ad nauseum. I was flying with a very experienced crew and I remember the captain commenting that this was the worst he had experienced in 20 some years of flying anti-submarine and fishing patrols which are often flown at low altitudes
I was sicker than the proverbial dog but the thought of those poor guys in the water kept me glued to the window.
I was based in Greenwood NS and the rig The Ocean Ranger had capsized in severe weather.
We were flying a mission looking for survivors. I had volunteered to be a spotter. We were very low looking for rafts or anything that could help us find survivors. The turbulence was awful... barf bags were used ad nauseum. I was flying with a very experienced crew and I remember the captain commenting that this was the worst he had experienced in 20 some years of flying anti-submarine and fishing patrols which are often flown at low altitudes
I was sicker than the proverbial dog but the thought of those poor guys in the water kept me glued to the window.
Jul 2, 2010 | 6:43 am
#21
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: EDI, and often LHR, DOH and PVG, OPO or AMS - or just about anywhere else...
Programs: BA Silver (soft-drop now I moved all longhauls away), KLM Gold, Emirates Gold, and others
Posts: 83
my worst experience is a recent one.
flying from GRU to JFK few weeks back. Late night departure from GRU, somewhere around the Caribbean while I was deep asleep there was a short but very strong turbulence. suddenly out of nowhere I could see the flight diving nose down for few LONG seconds and the next moment it was climbing hard. I was glued to the backseat. and then nothing... the turbulence was over but there was this eerie silence
flying from GRU to JFK few weeks back. Late night departure from GRU, somewhere around the Caribbean while I was deep asleep there was a short but very strong turbulence. suddenly out of nowhere I could see the flight diving nose down for few LONG seconds and the next moment it was climbing hard. I was glued to the backseat. and then nothing... the turbulence was over but there was this eerie silence
Arghhh you're not kidding - I've done similar routes from GRU and 90% of the time about halfway you go through "rag doll" air, where the entire plane bounces about like its on strings for a few minutes... One time coming back from GRU it was so bad (and with so little warning) that an flight attendant got knocked clean over and the drinks trolley came crashing down next to her - smashed through the inerior lining panel right next to the door causing all sorts of panic!
Even this wasn't my most scary experience - a few years ago a United 747 our of Heathrow lost the inboard flap guide cover came clean off JUST as we rotated... I was in J and couldn't see what had happened, just heard the Bang.. Then 100 people in Y screaming as they realised and started to shout out "a piece of the wing fell off"... They were really worried that the guide had bounced up and hit the tail, which apparently is a likely scenario right on rotation. We were cleared for an emergency landing whilst they reviewed our condition - and asked for permission to dump fuel and land. Scary stuff at the time.
Jul 2, 2010 | 11:02 am
#22
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: YYZ
Programs: Aeroplan, Air Miles
Posts: 942
I've had two. One I cannot remember and my mom wouldn't talk about it - apparently it is bad luck to talk about these things. I was 5 and flying from LHR to KUL and we had to stop in Bombay for a couple of days - from what I can remember the engine was on fire. But I don't remember much of the episode except that on the way to the hotel, there were people sleeping on the streets on both sides of the road all the way to the hotel.
2nd incident was on a ZOOM airlines from YYZ to GLA.. It was a rainy day at YYZ - but when we took off it was just kind of misty or spitting, not really raining. As we were ascending, we hit turbulence and the plane dropped who knows how much - but so much so that my heart was in my throat - the feeling you get when you are on a roller coaster and the thing just made a plunge. And people were actually screaming + crying.. That was scary..
and the worst thing is, the guy next to me was scared of flying and he had just told his wife who was seated in the middle row with her parents that he thinks "today is the day" Needless to say, he drank quite a bit after and fell asleep on my shoulder all the way to GLA. His wife had to keep apologizing to me.. haha..
2nd incident was on a ZOOM airlines from YYZ to GLA.. It was a rainy day at YYZ - but when we took off it was just kind of misty or spitting, not really raining. As we were ascending, we hit turbulence and the plane dropped who knows how much - but so much so that my heart was in my throat - the feeling you get when you are on a roller coaster and the thing just made a plunge. And people were actually screaming + crying.. That was scary..
and the worst thing is, the guy next to me was scared of flying and he had just told his wife who was seated in the middle row with her parents that he thinks "today is the day" Needless to say, he drank quite a bit after and fell asleep on my shoulder all the way to GLA. His wife had to keep apologizing to me.. haha..
Jul 2, 2010 | 7:07 pm
#23
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 2
Great stories! Here's mine...
A friend and I were flying BGI-YYZ, on a Wardair A310-300, back in pre-9/11 days when employees were quite welcome to ride in the flight deck.
A couple of hours into the flight we were approaching Bermuda, and could see these HUGE thunderheads ahead of us, which must have reached in excess of 40,000 feet. The F/O asked us to make sure our shoulder belts were on, then requested that the F/A's be seated.
Presumably the Captain had requested and received clearance for some variance from the intended flight path. He disengaged the auto-pilot, and we were in for the ride of our lives! The Captain and F/O appeared to be picking and choosing the thunderheads that they would fly between, and despite being buffeted intensely, it was like being in a high-tech video game. For the best part of an hour our altitude and headings were all over the place, my friend Anne and I were in parts thrilled and appalled at the skill and ...was it fun??... the pilots were displaying.
We assumed this was what an experienced pilot might call a "light chop", but upon landing in Toronto, the aircraft was taken out of service for a deep cabin cleaning, and according to our friends and co-workers seated in the passenger cabin, the turbulence was EXTREME, the meal service was abandoned completely, barf bags were in use in every second seat.
Moral of the story, it's always best to be in the "driver's seat".
A friend and I were flying BGI-YYZ, on a Wardair A310-300, back in pre-9/11 days when employees were quite welcome to ride in the flight deck.
A couple of hours into the flight we were approaching Bermuda, and could see these HUGE thunderheads ahead of us, which must have reached in excess of 40,000 feet. The F/O asked us to make sure our shoulder belts were on, then requested that the F/A's be seated.
Presumably the Captain had requested and received clearance for some variance from the intended flight path. He disengaged the auto-pilot, and we were in for the ride of our lives! The Captain and F/O appeared to be picking and choosing the thunderheads that they would fly between, and despite being buffeted intensely, it was like being in a high-tech video game. For the best part of an hour our altitude and headings were all over the place, my friend Anne and I were in parts thrilled and appalled at the skill and ...was it fun??... the pilots were displaying.
We assumed this was what an experienced pilot might call a "light chop", but upon landing in Toronto, the aircraft was taken out of service for a deep cabin cleaning, and according to our friends and co-workers seated in the passenger cabin, the turbulence was EXTREME, the meal service was abandoned completely, barf bags were in use in every second seat.
Moral of the story, it's always best to be in the "driver's seat".
Jul 5, 2010 | 9:15 pm
#24
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: YYG
Programs: Air Canada SE
Posts: 132
On a Dash-8 YYG-YHZ, about halfway to YHZ we get the announcement, "Please fasten your seatbelts, and pour your drinks on the floor immediately." Seconds later, we began what could only be described as a 20-minute thrashing. About half the passengers were sick to the point of throwing up.
A close second was the Dash-8 ride YYG-YUL on the evening of 03/08/2008. Yes, we flew into that blizzard. It was bumpy for the last hour or so doing circuits over YUL, and the landing was absolutely harrowing. Although, when landing with a 60+ knot headwind you really don't need much runway. After landing, we pulled onto the taxiway and were literally blown sideways as the aircraft weathercocked and the main gear slid. The pilots got it back on the taxiway and we were blown sideways again. Finally, we made it onto the main taxiway, but by this time visibility had dropped to zero. We spent about 2 hours being buffetted by the tailwind - engines running - while a crew made its way out to lead us to the terminal.
After seeing the conditions inside the terminal that night, I almost wanted to get back on that comfy Dash.
A close second was the Dash-8 ride YYG-YUL on the evening of 03/08/2008. Yes, we flew into that blizzard. It was bumpy for the last hour or so doing circuits over YUL, and the landing was absolutely harrowing. Although, when landing with a 60+ knot headwind you really don't need much runway. After landing, we pulled onto the taxiway and were literally blown sideways as the aircraft weathercocked and the main gear slid. The pilots got it back on the taxiway and we were blown sideways again. Finally, we made it onto the main taxiway, but by this time visibility had dropped to zero. We spent about 2 hours being buffetted by the tailwind - engines running - while a crew made its way out to lead us to the terminal.
After seeing the conditions inside the terminal that night, I almost wanted to get back on that comfy Dash.
Jul 5, 2010 | 10:38 pm
#25
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Ontario, CAN
Posts: 5,812
Jul 6, 2010 | 3:42 pm
#27
In Memoriam, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Durham, NC (RDU/GSO/CLT)
Programs: AA EXP/MM, DL GM, UA Platinum, HH DIA, Hyatt Explorist, IHG Platinum, Marriott Titanium, Hertz PC
Posts: 33,856
This must have been about fifteen years ago.
I was flying JFK-ORY with my Mother and Brother in the summer of 95 or 96. There were thunderstorms just off JFK and we sat on the ground for a few hours. Luckily, the plane was empty so we each had a two seater to ourselves. Eventually, we took off into the thunderstorm and the plane bounced around to the point where I was very much afraid for my life. My Mother later told me she was so sure she was going to crash and she wasn't sure how she would hug us as the plane went down as we were in two different rows.
I was flying JFK-ORY with my Mother and Brother in the summer of 95 or 96. There were thunderstorms just off JFK and we sat on the ground for a few hours. Luckily, the plane was empty so we each had a two seater to ourselves. Eventually, we took off into the thunderstorm and the plane bounced around to the point where I was very much afraid for my life. My Mother later told me she was so sure she was going to crash and she wasn't sure how she would hug us as the plane went down as we were in two different rows.
Jul 6, 2010 | 5:02 pm
#29
Suspended
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 3,096
There are two, hard to say which was the worst.
The first was in 1994, ORD-YYZ on an AA MD81. The pilot had said prior to t/o that there was weather "But we will be giving it a wide berth". What followed was a terrifying 40 minutes of turbulence so bad the fuselage creaked, a few O2 masks droped, bins fell open, and even the FA's looked terrified. Needless to say, many pax were using the bags and a few who SHOULD have used the bags failed to, or ran out...it was a horrible, stinking mess. Luckily it was a short flight and approach into YYZ was smooth. What was funny was that as we deplaned, the waiting pax could see many of us coming off covered in vomit and a few loudly refused to board to their companions. I kept my dinner down..but it was a struggle.
The other was IAD to PHX on WN in 2008. 737 obviously, cannot remember which series. The jet stream was shooting right across the southwest/south, and turbulenceforecast.com was showing a wide swath of "severe" from PHX all the way back to New Orleans. The turb started right on take off and did not stop until wheels down in PHX. It was not quite as hellish as the AA experience, but it was bad enough to get most of the pax ill and cause screaming..and the worst part was that it went on for 3.5 hours....it took that long because of the headwinds so the whole thing was dragged with additional time. Pilot went up as high as 40 and down as low as 25 and it was bad at all levels. It was too wide to get around without a fuel stop. Yes, it stank of vomit in that cacaphony of screaming kids and adults. Not fun.
Incidentally, I am sure some FF's have seen "barf boulevard" at MCI...in the USAirways terminal you can go downstairs and there are some washrooms there. The gates on the lower level are for the commuter props..beechcraft etc. As the weather is usually unstable at MCI if you sit down there and watch the flights come in and the pax deplane, you tend to see people loosing their lunch as they sprint for the washroom, or at least carrying a white baggy or two and the carpet has stains all over it. Kind of sad....but I see this every time I am there which these days is every other month or so.
The first was in 1994, ORD-YYZ on an AA MD81. The pilot had said prior to t/o that there was weather "But we will be giving it a wide berth". What followed was a terrifying 40 minutes of turbulence so bad the fuselage creaked, a few O2 masks droped, bins fell open, and even the FA's looked terrified. Needless to say, many pax were using the bags and a few who SHOULD have used the bags failed to, or ran out...it was a horrible, stinking mess. Luckily it was a short flight and approach into YYZ was smooth. What was funny was that as we deplaned, the waiting pax could see many of us coming off covered in vomit and a few loudly refused to board to their companions. I kept my dinner down..but it was a struggle.
The other was IAD to PHX on WN in 2008. 737 obviously, cannot remember which series. The jet stream was shooting right across the southwest/south, and turbulenceforecast.com was showing a wide swath of "severe" from PHX all the way back to New Orleans. The turb started right on take off and did not stop until wheels down in PHX. It was not quite as hellish as the AA experience, but it was bad enough to get most of the pax ill and cause screaming..and the worst part was that it went on for 3.5 hours....it took that long because of the headwinds so the whole thing was dragged with additional time. Pilot went up as high as 40 and down as low as 25 and it was bad at all levels. It was too wide to get around without a fuel stop. Yes, it stank of vomit in that cacaphony of screaming kids and adults. Not fun.
Incidentally, I am sure some FF's have seen "barf boulevard" at MCI...in the USAirways terminal you can go downstairs and there are some washrooms there. The gates on the lower level are for the commuter props..beechcraft etc. As the weather is usually unstable at MCI if you sit down there and watch the flights come in and the pax deplane, you tend to see people loosing their lunch as they sprint for the washroom, or at least carrying a white baggy or two and the carpet has stains all over it. Kind of sad....but I see this every time I am there which these days is every other month or so.
Jul 6, 2010 | 5:16 pm
#30
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: ORD/MDW
Programs: BA/AA/AS/B6/WN/ UA/HH/MR and more like 'em but most felicitously & importantly MUCCI
Posts: 19,811
Oh, those Dash-8s. They take a lot of punishment...
I was on a short BOS-PWM hop on a sunny summer afternoon in 1992 -- a "Northwest Airlink" (NW had a minihub at Logan at the time) Dash-8. We passed through 5000 on climbout and suddenly the airplane was being manhandled by poltergeists. Up, down, sideways. You could see the cockpit crew's body English up front and they were, um, distressed. The rest of us were dead silent. You know, rationally, the wings cannot fall off... but you start to believe it's going to happen. The damnedest part was, it was clear and sunny outside -- no clouds or precip -- just rogue winds at low altitude. The flight was 90 miles, felt like 90 minutes. By the grace of God I hadn't eaten all day. Those who had, got a second look at it. I am a calm flyer and sleep through all kinds of chop, but that half-hour on a Dash-8 careering around in the New England sky was terrifying.
I was on a short BOS-PWM hop on a sunny summer afternoon in 1992 -- a "Northwest Airlink" (NW had a minihub at Logan at the time) Dash-8. We passed through 5000 on climbout and suddenly the airplane was being manhandled by poltergeists. Up, down, sideways. You could see the cockpit crew's body English up front and they were, um, distressed. The rest of us were dead silent. You know, rationally, the wings cannot fall off... but you start to believe it's going to happen. The damnedest part was, it was clear and sunny outside -- no clouds or precip -- just rogue winds at low altitude. The flight was 90 miles, felt like 90 minutes. By the grace of God I hadn't eaten all day. Those who had, got a second look at it. I am a calm flyer and sleep through all kinds of chop, but that half-hour on a Dash-8 careering around in the New England sky was terrifying.