Hurricane hunters
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Hurricane Hunters is the nickname given to the U.S. Air Force Reserves' 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, whose fleet of ten WC-130 Hercules aircraft and crews are part of the 403rd wing, based at Keesler AFB in Biloxi, Mississippi. They are the only Department of Defense squadron that still flies into tropical cyclone storm systems.
Purpose
Although satellite data has revolutionized weather forecasters' ability to spot tropical cyclones before they form, there are still many important tasks for which it is not suited. Satellite imagery cannot determine the interior barometric pressure of a hurricane, nor can it provide accurate information about wind speeds. These data are needed by forecasters to accurately predict a hurricane's development and movement.Because satellites cannot collect the data and ships are both too slow and too vulnerable to large storm-generated waves, the only viable way to collect this data is with aircraft. Thus the 53rd Squadron has the task of flying instrumented aircraft into Atlantic storms to collect the required meteorological data.
Aircraft
The WC-130 and WP-3D aircraft are both large, sturdy naval patrol aircraft with turboprop engines. Their purpose is to fly directly into the hurricane, typically penetrating the hurricane's eye several times in one mission. In contrast, NOAA's Gulfstream IV-SP circles hurricanes at high altitude, collecting weather data about storms' surroundings.
All three aircraft models have been heavily modified through the addition of multiple large weather radars, dropsonde support, and meteorology stations; however, the aircraft are not specially strengthened for the task of investigating hurricanes. (The 75-155 mph wind speed of a hurricane is very low compared to the 400-500 mph of a typical airplane, although turbulence is cleary an issue.)
Outside of hurricane season, hurricane hunter aircraft are often deployed to northern parts of the United States to track winter storms and nor'easters.
Other aircraft have been used to investigate hurricanes, including an instrumented Lockheed U-2 that was flown in Hurricane Ginny during the 1963 Atlantic hurricane season.
History
1943 Surprise Hurricane
The 1943 Surprise Hurricane, which struck Houston, Texas during World War II, marked the first intentional meteorological flight into a hurricane. It started with a bet.That summer, British pilots were being trained in instrument flying at Bryan Field. When they saw that the Americans were evacuating their AT-6 Texan trainers in the face of the storm, they began questioning the construction of the aircraft. Lead instructor Colonel Joe Duckworth took one of the trainers out, and flew it straight into the eye of the storm. After he returned safely with navigator Lt. Ralph O'Hair, the base's weather officer, Lt. William Jones-Burdick, took over the navigator's seat and Duckworth flew into the storm a second time.
This flight showed that hurricane reconnaissance flights were possible, and further flights continued on an irregular basis. In 1975, the U.S. Air Force Reserve established a dedicated squadron for the purpose of flying into hurricanes and other severe storms.
Swan 38
In 1974, a newly converted WC-130H (serial number 65-0965) was transferred to the 54th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam. The aircraft was sent to investigate Typhoon Bess. The crew departed Clark Air Base in the Philippines with the callsign "Swan 38".Radio contact with the aircraft was lost on 12 October 1974, apparently as the aircraft was heading into the typhoon's eye to make a second position fix. There were no radio transmissions indicating an emergency on board, and search teams could not locate the aircraft or its crew. All six crew members were listed as KIA.
Swan 38 is one of only a handful of Hurricane Hunter flights lost, and the only WC-130 to go down in a storm.
Hurricane Katrina
The landfall of Hurricane Katrina on 29 August 2005 caused devastating damage to Keesler AFB, home base of the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron. The equipment and personnel of the squadron are now flying out of Dobbins Air Reserve Base near Atlanta. However, the 403rd wing — of which the 53rd is a part — has been moved to two different locations: Little Rock Air Force Base in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, Georgia. They will remain there for the foreseeable future, according to Al Bosco, a Keesler spokesman, while Keesler is used largely for humanitarian support of local communities.Trivia
On-camera meteorologists Warren Madden and Nicole Mitchell of The Weather Channel are part of the Hurricane Hunters. The TV network's studios are located just a few minutes away from Dobbins, from which they would normally fly to Keesler to join missions. Both are located in Cobb County, in the northwestern suburbs of metro Atlanta.See also
- redirect
Sources
Swan 38
- [Whiskey Charlie]
- [ASN Accident description 13 OCT 1974 Lockheed WC-130H Hercules 65-0965]
- [Why and how people fly into hurricanes] - USA Today - sidebar, "Fatal flights"
External links
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