Travel chaos: Flying to be 'more expensive' reveals expert

Severe turbulence during flights has witnessed a 55 percent rise since the 1970s, making air travel nowadays a considerably more jarring experience, UK-based scientists have revealed. Each year, tens of thousands of aircraft experience severe turbulence, resulting in significant financial repercussions for the global aviation sector. The estimated cost of these incidents can reach up to $1billion (£797million), including expenses related to structural damage to airplanes, flight delays, and the costs associated with injuries suffered during turbulence.

The culprit behind this phenomenon is the jet stream, which has become increasingly erratic due to the effects of climate change, scientists have found.

This has resulted in abrupt and forceful clashes between winds travelling at different speeds and directions, the Telegraph reports.

Satellite data collected by the University of Reading reveals that instances of severe turbulence, the type that can throw passengers off their feet, have escalated from an annual average of 17.7 hours across any location in the north Atlantic to 27.4 hours.

Dr Paul Williams, a professor of atmospheric science within Reading’s meteorology department, warned that though “it might not seem like a lot but this is severe turbulence that will lift you out of your seat if you’re not wearing a seat belt”.

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He told the Telegraph: “This is just the beginning. We expect it to get much worse than this, and unless we cut emissions we will see twice or three times as much turbulence.

“For nervous flyers – which is about 30 percent of people – this is the stuff of nightmares.”

While some turbulence can be blamed on specific locations, such as in the vicinity of convection storms or over mountain ranges, there is a distinct type known as “clear-air turbulence” (CAT) that occurs when air masses moving at varying speeds intersect. 

Unlike other forms of turbulence, CAT poses significant challenges in terms of observation and prediction due to its elusive nature.

Severe turbulence has the potential to induce abrupt plunges or tilting of an aircraft, momentarily leaving the pilot with limited control. 

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This can result in passengers experiencing brief instances of weightlessness and the risk of injuries due to luggage falling from overhead compartments.

Research indicates that moderate turbulence, which makes movement within the cabin challenging, has risen by 37 percent over the past four decades, increasing from 70 to 96 hours. 

Additionally, light turbulence has experienced a 17 percent increase, from 466 to 546 hours, since 1979.

Since the 1970s, the number of passengers and crew members sustaining serious injuries as a consequence of turbulence has doubled from one in a million to two in a million. 

This means that approximately 8,000 individuals are affected each year.

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