wake vortex
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Join Date: Feb 2006
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wake vortex
Several years ago I and Mrs. Frequentflyer2 were travelling from BHD to MAN on a BA Embraer 145 - or as you professionals seem to refer to it a 'barbie jet'.
It was a beautiful summer's morning and the flight was very pleasant. However, during the approach, just minutes from landing, 'barbie' freaked out rolling violently to one side and then the other. Simultaneously she appeared to shake and judder and the hitherto peaceful cabin filled with shall we say 'exclamations of surprise'. The pilot applied full power and climbed before explaining we had struck the wake vortex of a much larger airliner. Had anyone been standing up they would undoubtedly have been thrown around and injured. 'Barbie' went on to land safely but as the incident occurred directly over Stockport Sewage Works we have reflected since then on how close we came to literally landing in the proverbial. Perhaps a professional pilot reading this could advise on how much danger we were actually in. To be truthful it was quite scary at the time.
It was a beautiful summer's morning and the flight was very pleasant. However, during the approach, just minutes from landing, 'barbie' freaked out rolling violently to one side and then the other. Simultaneously she appeared to shake and judder and the hitherto peaceful cabin filled with shall we say 'exclamations of surprise'. The pilot applied full power and climbed before explaining we had struck the wake vortex of a much larger airliner. Had anyone been standing up they would undoubtedly have been thrown around and injured. 'Barbie' went on to land safely but as the incident occurred directly over Stockport Sewage Works we have reflected since then on how close we came to literally landing in the proverbial. Perhaps a professional pilot reading this could advise on how much danger we were actually in. To be truthful it was quite scary at the time.
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I'm not a pro, but I've a few hundred hours under my belt on smaller equipment and can honestly say that any disturbance always feels worse to me when I'm in the back.
For example, going out to Prague last year, we clipped the top of a CB cloud during the climb and the left wing dropped sharply.
My immediate reaction was to grab the armrests. With a little reflection, the wing drop was probably no more than 15 degrees, if that .... it just always feels worse in the back in my experience
I'm not a pro, but I've a few hundred hours under my belt on smaller equipment and can honestly say that any disturbance always feels worse to me when I'm in the back.
For example, going out to Prague last year, we clipped the top of a CB cloud during the climb and the left wing dropped sharply.
My immediate reaction was to grab the armrests. With a little reflection, the wing drop was probably no more than 15 degrees, if that .... it just always feels worse in the back in my experience
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Simply put, not a lot. But there are a few provisos on this. The biggest is that there has to be enough sky between you and the ground. Then, it would also be nice not to end up in such a position that you over-stress the aircraft on recovery. However, the reality is, they are an everyday occurance. During the majority of these, the aircraft moves only a few inches and "safety" is not an issue. On the rare occasions where a major upset occurs, the people who normally suffer are cabin crew. Around the world, several are injured every year. However, other injuries can be sustained by the contents of the overhead lockers being flung around, hot food and drink being spilt and passengers who have decided not to leave their seat belt fastened "bumping" into things and each other. It is easy to say "relax", but that really is all you can do.
