Seems that the C-130s won’t be ready until 2030. Looks like they’re using WP-3D Orion aircraft currently.
Comment on Going out the way he lived
SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works 2 months agoC-130s really do it all
KamikazeRusher@lemm.ee 2 months ago
SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
KamikazeRusher@lemm.ee 2 months ago
Well shit, I read the Wikipedia link and some articles from the comment about the NOAA Hurricane Hunters and assumed you were referring to them.
The C-130J you linked from the ADS-B recorder seems to be military. Guess they’ve been using them for a while for storm reconnaissance.
SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
Yeah the post directly mentions the NOAA guys but the Air Force Reserve hurricane hunters are what came to mind my mistake
proudblond@lemmy.world 2 months ago
WOW. I live relatively near an active base and occasionally these beasts will fly overhead. I had no idea they were capable of literally flying through hurricanes; that is extra badass. I’m not really an aircraft enthusiast or anything but it still gives me a bit of a thrill to hear them thundering overhead.
TopRamenBinLaden@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
It’s pretty crazy to think about, but regular passenger jumbo jets experience hurricane force winds constantly. What actually puts a lot of stress on an aircraft fuselage is sudden shifts in wind speed, especially if the forces are vertical and cause the plane to rise or fall rapidly.
So, most modern planes could fly through a hurricane as long as they travel with the direction of wind and avoid major pockets of turbulence. The C130s are extra strong because they are built to handle the stress of transporting very large payloads. The hurricane hunters use these while they are pretty much empty so they have a lot of extra stress tolerance to work with.
bamfic@lemmy.world 2 months ago
and are designed to be shot at