'Hunters' fly with hurricanes

  • Published
  • By Susan Griggs
  • 81st Training Wing Public Affairs
KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. (AFPN) --  As the midway point of hurricane season approaches, the 53rd Reconnaissance Squadron "Hurricane Hunters" here remain vigilant about tropical-weather threats.

The Hurricane Hunters are part of Air Force Reserve Command’s 403rd Wing here. They are the only Department of Defense organization still flying into tropical storms and hurricanes on a routine basis.

Since 1944, the mission of the Hurricane Hunters has been aerial weather reconnaissance.

The Hurricane Hunters take to the skies to collect data from areas where it is impractical or impossible to have ground observation stations, or where weather satellites cannot provide complete information.

During the hurricane season from June 1 to Nov. 30, the Hurricane Hunters provide surveillance of tropical disturbances and hurricanes in the western Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico for the National Hurricane Center in Miami. They may also fly missions for the Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu.

From Nov. 1 through April 15, the unit also flies winter missions off both coasts of the United States supporting the National Center for Environmental Prediction. These missions can be just as challenging as hurricane missions, with turbulence, lightning and icing, according to Maj. Christa Hornbaker, an aerial reconnaissance officer.

“The past few years we’ve been to Alaska to collect information in the northern Pacific, which has been especially helpful in 'El Nino' years. They have some pretty hefty storms,” she said. “Also we fly missions off the East Coast if they’re expecting a potent ‘nor’easter’ to develop.”

Accurate forecasting can save both lives and property, said Lt. Col. Doug Lipscombe, a training officer for the squadron’s aerial reconnaissance weather officers. A typical hurricane warning costs an estimated $192 million in preparation, evacuation and lost commerce.

Narrowing the warning area lends greater credibility to forecasts and enables more controlled and limited coastal evacuations. As coastal populations continue to grow, evacuation decisions need to be made earlier. Some areas already require more than 48 hours to clear in advance of a major hurricane, officials said.

“Any way we can increase the accuracy and decrease the economic impact is a plus,” Lipscombe said.

The Hurricane Hunters have 10 WC-130H Hercules aircraft with computerized meteorological data-gathering equipment to cover up to five missions per day. There are also five new WC-130J aircraft here. The J model is being used for “synoptic tracks,” which involve flying at high altitude around the storm to map out the steering winds, as well as some testing in the storms.

When conditions are favorable for hurricane development, Keesler’s flying weather crews move into action.

Hurricanes are composed of dense thunderstorms with severe turbulence and heavy rain. A solid ring of thunderstorms called the eyewall usually surrounds the eye. This is where the strongest winds are commonly found. Sometimes the clouds and rain are so thick the aircraft’s wing tips are barely visible. By contrast, the eye is comparatively calm and virtually cloud-free, officials said.

The first investigative missions are flown at low levels between 500 and 1,500 feet. They determine if the winds near the ocean surface are blowing in a complete counterclockwise circle and also pinpoint the center of this closed circulation, the first stage of a developing tropical cyclone.

As the storm strengthens, the aircraft enter the area at 5,000 to 10,000 feet, choosing higher altitudes as the storm becomes more severe. The tops of the storm clouds may reach 50,000 feet, so the aircraft does not fly over the storm, but right through the thick of the weather to collect the most valuable information from the eye.

The information collected from instruments aboard the aircraft and from small canisters dropped by parachute is sent directly to the National Hurricane Center in Miami by satellite to provide the most accurate measurement of the storm’s location and intensity.

“This season we have some newer (equipment),” Hornbaker said. "We’re able to process more information. These improvements have allowed us to do successful instrument drops in the eyewall, which we previously couldn’t do.”

The Hunters' missions have lead to new discoveries about eyewall structure that has helped the center in Miami upgrade its hurricane model, she said.

Each of the weather missions averages about 11 hours and can cover nearly 3,500 miles.

Charleston AFB, S.C., Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., and Patrick AFB, Fla., are alternate locations for the Hurricane Hunters if a storm hits the Gulf of Mexico near here. (Capt. Krista Carlos contributed to this report.)