Annual numbers of commercial transport aircraft encounters with severe or extreme atmospheric turbulence — including invisible clear air turbulence (CAT) — are considered small but consequential. The low-but-steady toll in occupant injuries and, in the rarest cases, fatalities or aircraft damage, ensures constant attention to the issue. These factors have led to further efforts in airline-level risk reduction and, in the United States, new updates to official guidance about CAT.
Clear Air Turbulence
Latest prediction and detection capabilities prompt rewrites of guidance for avoidance.