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View Full Version : When is it safe to land in typhoon condition? (A330)


epc
28th Sep 2016, 06:09
So, EVA Air flight BR 189 landed in TSA at 02:12 PM local time (CST) on 27 Sept 2016.

https://flightaware.com/live/flight/EVA189/history/20160927/0150Z/RJTT/RCSS

A very strong typhoon was blowing through Taiwan at the time, and there's a video of the landing floating around in Facebook. It showed basically passengers being shaken and screaming.

Being a non-pilot, I tried to look up the landing condition a the time. What I gathered was the flight, an A330, landed on runway 28. The weather condition at the time was wind 36 gust 70 from 070 deg, visibility 600, LIFR.

See: RCSS Taipei Songshan Airport Weather - Taipei City, Taiwan (http://www.checkwx.com/weather/RCSS) Refer to weather data for Sep 27 @ 06:12 (UTC).

Given these, would you (a professional pilot) divert? Local news is certainly being unkind on EVA for being the only airline to continue landing flights in northern Taiwan that day.

I fly into Taiwan sometimes. Sometimes on EVA. So this is kind of personally interesting to me...

Thanks!

Redredrobin
28th Sep 2016, 07:01
Flightaware does show this but checking with FR24 shows that the landing was at Naha (OKA) following a diversion. Aircraft B-16333 then flew to Taipei (TPE) as BR189D landing at 13.53 UTC, finally positioning to TSA, landing at 22.19 UTC. Is this the flight you quote? If so, no drama.

epc
28th Sep 2016, 07:29
Redredrobin:

I see what you're saying. I don't know why the data between FR24 and Flightaware is so different.

I watched the Facebook video again and from the shaky video, it looks like the flight landed in TPE at night, sometimes after 9 PM local time, so I think you're right.

Given that, the weather in TPE for Sep 27 at 13:30 UTC was wind 37 / 52 from 080, VFR. Flight landed on runway 05L.

I guess it was just nervous passengers, then?

Redredrobin
28th Sep 2016, 07:49
I think I would have been nervous too - the first flight took a look at TSA then diverted 350nm to OKA. On return to Taiwan there was another look at TSA before the diversion to TPE - at least only 11 minutes away.
The Flightaware track of the flight seems to agree with FR24 until well into the divert to OKA. It then looses position information and only picks up a 'landed' status, which it assumes was at the intended destination. I would guess FR24 has more complete data in this instance.

Pace
28th Sep 2016, 08:12
There are so many factors! How much of a crosswind not so much the wind strength!
Having had experience landing in severe winds with all the alternatives the same and winds stronger than forecast the biggest problem is windshear on the approach with large fluctuations on IAS
Hence also into consideration is not just the runway direction but also surrounding terrain airport buildings etc as well as crosswind component in the choice of alternative

Needs must sometimes as many u tube footage will show
The old principal of half the gust factor in extreme conditions ? There can be a massive variation on reported surface gust factors and those on approach

sabenaboy
28th Sep 2016, 08:30
Epc,
Would it be possible to provide a link to the Facebook video you're referring to?
(Or suggest search terms that would lead to a result)

epc
28th Sep 2016, 09:03
sabenaboy:

I'm not sure if you will be able to view it, but here you go:

https://www.facebook.com/annie.chen.9421/videos/10209182258967203/

And on viewing it once more, I now notice the flight map showed the track from OKA to Taipei, so Redredrobin was exactly right. The video was showing the landing of BR189D in TPE at 13:53 UTC on Sep 27.