Severe turbulence injures 24 on JetBlue Flight 429

By Scott Bachmeier • 11 August 2016

JetBlue Flight 429 flight path [click to enlarge]

JetBlue Flight 429 encountered severe turbulence over south-central South Dakota around 0115 UTC on 12 August (7:15 pm local time on 11 August) 2016, which caused injuries to 22 passengers and 2 crew members (media story). The aircraft (flying from Boston MA to Sacramento CA) had to be diverted to Rapid City SD, as seen on the flight path map above (source: FlightAware.com).

GOES-13 Visible (0.63 µm) images, with pilot reports of turbulence [click to play animation]

1-km resolution GOES-13 Visible (0.63 µm) images (above) showed widespread thunderstorms across the region, with rapidly-developing new cells forming in the vicinity of the turbulence encounter. A Turbulence AIRMET had been issued around 23 UTC for that portion of the flight path, and Convective SIGMETs also advised of the potential for severe thunderstorms with tops above 45,000 feet (JetBlue 429 was cruising at an altitude of 32,000 feet).

The corresponding 4-km resolution GOES-13 Infrared Window (10.7 µm) images (below) indicated that cloud-top IR brightness temperatures were as cold as -54º C (orange color enhancement) just east of the pilot report at 0100 UTC.

GOES-13 Infrared Window (10.7 µm) images, with pilot reports of turbulence [click to play animation]

1-km resolution POES AVHRR Visible (0.86 µm) and Infrared (12.0 µm) images at 0049 UTC (below) provided a more detailed view of the developing cells less than 30 minutes prior to the turbulence encounter.

POES AVHRR Visible (0.86 µm) and Infrared (12.0 µm) images, with pilot reports [click to enlarge]

Categories: AVHRR, Aviation, GOES-13, POES, Severe convection

CIMSS Satellite Blog

CIMSS Satellite Blog

Severe turbulence injures 24 on JetBlue Flight 429