Airlines are showing increased interest in IATA’s turbulence awareness program, a data collection system that helps pilots navigate tricky weather in real time, following last month’s Singapore Airlines incident that left one dead and dozens injured.
Turbulence Aware was launched by IATA in 2018 to help airlines mitigate the effects of turbulence, the leading cause of airborne injuries to passengers and crew. The program currently has 21 airlines inputting data into the system, and IATA aims to collect turbulence reports from 150 million flights by the end of 2024, says Nick Careen, who leads the airline’s work on safety, security and operations.
“There are discussions with quite a number of airlines. There has been increased interest,” says Careen. “More information and more data will certainly improve the situation.”
