Singapore Airlines SQ321 turbulence: Is climate change creating the increase in turbulence?
It appears warming global temperatures are more than likely to mean your plane rides will be accompanied by bumpier weather conditions, creating more situations like that of the Singapore Airlines flight, which killed one person, and the severe turbulence that caused eight people to be hospitalised following a Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Dublin.
The severe turbulence experienced on a Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore resulted in the death of a 73-year-old man, and more than 70 people were injured. The incident raises questions regarding the severe consequences of turbulence and the increasing impact this has on plane travel. Passengers on board the Boeing 777-300ER saw the plane tilt and shake before dropping unexpectedly.
Paul Williams at Reading University, UK, stated, "Severe turbulence is the one that turns you into a projectile. For anyone not wearing a seatbelt, it would have been a bit like being on a rollercoaster without any restraint in place — it would have been terrifying".
How is the turbulence experienced by aeroplanes caused?
At high altitudes, air in storm clouds flowing up and down can result in severe turbulence. This can also occur on the edges of jet streams, which are basically strong air currents that circle around the planet. The type of turbulence that resulted in the Singapore Airlines incident would have taken some time to form.
Are the impacts of climate change on air travel becoming more common?
Atmospheric researcher Jung-Hoon Kim at Seol National University stated, "Clear-air turbulence in the atmosphere will increase significantly in all aviation-related strength categories as the climate changes."
According to a 2024 study from Williams in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, aeroplanes have begun to experience moderate, severe, or greater turbulence 68,000 times each year. Clear air turbulence is becoming more common, and it can strike without warning.
A study published in 2023 shows that global trends from 1979 to 2020 prove that severe clear-air turbulence has become 55% more common. Williams has highlighted that "for every 10 minutes you've spent in severe turbulence in the past, it could be 20 or 30 minutes in the future."
Pilots regularly use turbulence projections in order to determine the best flight paths. However, radar cannot detect clear air turbulence and it requires a costly investment in new technology in order to be able to detect invisible clear air turbulence. Until then, Kim has warned, "fasten your seatbelts".
The Singapore Airline Flight SQ321 interior, pictured after landing at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, Thailand on 21 May, 2024. Source: Nature Article available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-01542-2
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To read the articles from Advances in Atmospheric Sciences and our other sources yourself, see below:
Advances in Atmospheric Sciences: https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1007/s00376-024-3195-x?sharing_token=Boj1rIuYrkEPAIfMbjTtrPe4RwlQNchNByi7wbcMAY7MB-N2Mw0-1zhlPwizcYQHHph5m085MnNLmp3FFt9SWHgaDUAC_2PFeqPeGLo9LKQTkp4TLNmr2n1YkbAAWP8QxFt28FVdf2VH4t79acDaLf1cd5Jdhy5x9cJ1gl_57IU%3D
BBC: https://bbc.com/future/article/20240524-severe-turbulence-climate-change-singapore-airlines
Geophysical Research Letters: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023GL103814