“Northeast Winds Passenger Flights”
The Impact of Strong Jet Streams on Passenger Flights
A Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 passenger flight from Washington, D.C., to London’s Heathrow Airport arrived 45 minutes early due to a powerful jet stream. A similar scene was witnessed in 2017 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Ted S. Warren/AP
Boosted by a strong jet stream over Washington, D.C., a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 flight landed at London’s Heathrow Airport well ahead of schedule. A comparable event occurred in 2017 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
High-altitude winds over the Mid-Atlantic accelerated air traffic on Saturday night, propelling at least two commercial planes to their destinations early, with speeds exceeding 800 mph.
At cruising altitude, winds peaked at around 265 mph, marking the second-highest wind speed recorded in the Washington, D.C., area since 1948. The highest recorded wind speed at a similar altitude was 267 mph on Dec. 6, 2002.
“Eastbound travelers in this jet will experience a significant tailwind,” cautioned the National Weather Service (NWS) in a tweet.
The tailwind significantly reduced the flight time for passengers on a Virgin Atlantic flight from D.C. to London by 45 minutes, as reported by FlightAware.
The Boeing 787 achieved a maximum ground speed of 802 mph, surpassing the speed of sound (767 mph). However, the aircraft did not break the sound barrier, as explained by The Washington Post.
Despite its ground speed exceeding the speed of sound, the plane maintained its ordinary cruise speed relative to the surrounding air, which was moving exceptionally fast, according to the Post.
Another Boeing 787, a United Airlines flight from Newark, N.J., to Lisbon, Portugal, reached a peak ground speed of 838 mph, cutting 20 minutes off the scheduled flight time.
Recently, a jet stream over the Pacific Ocean generated 250 mph winds, propelling a China Airlines flight to reach 826 mph.
While there are no official records for commercial flight speeds, recent ground speeds have been among the highest ever recorded. In February 2020, a British Airways Boeing 747 set a record for subsonic trans-Atlantic flight time, reaching a reported top speed of 825 mph.
Jet streams that boost flight speeds are often driven by temperature differentials. The Post highlighted that Saturday’s cold air in the Northeast combined with warmer air in the Southeast created ideal conditions for high winds.
Please visit our site 60time.com and don’t forget to follow us on social media at Facebook.
