Can a plane in flight be struck by lightning?
Answers:
Estimates show that each commercial airliner averages one lighting hit per year but the last crash that was attributed to lightning was in 1967 when the fuel tank exploded, causing the plane to crash. Generally, the first contact with lightning is at an extremity.the nose or a wingtip. As the plane continues to fly through the areas of opposite charges, the lightning transits through the aircraft skin and exits through another extremity point, frequently the tail (as shown by Gauss's Law).
no
yes
Of course haven't you seen movies, it happens all the time!
Maybe.
Yes if the plain had hi radio activity!
Yes
yes, it can happen
yes it can and does happen
although pilots usually try to avoid the storms
Of course it can happen..
It has happened..Planes don't attract lightning because they are not grounded but they can get in the path of lightning
yes. Lightning can pass through a plane as it lights up the night sky.
.and it's not very healthy for the plane either!
yes, but it won't do too much damage as lightning needs an earth, so it will either go round the plane or right through it, passing on to the ground below.
the only thing i would freak out about is if the plane is hit by a bolt of positive lightning.
yes
it wont be earth but the plane's materials allows lightning to make it go 'around' the skin of the plane and straight down to the ground.
it happens quite often as a matter of fact.
Yes!!
Yes! For more details please look on National Geografic chanel; they have a documentary on this subjec on air desasters, or something like this.
Of course it can't, lightning is caused by a build up of static electricty in clouds. When the voltage of this electricity exceeds the sustainable capacitance of the moisture in the cloud then the electricity must travel to earth being that this is the strongest local magnetic source. A plane is not a magnetic source, therefore DON'T BE STUPID!
I have no idea
Yes it can, if you ever look at the trailing edge of the wings you will notice small rods similar in shape to a pencil. These are called (Static Discharge wicks). As the jet flies thru the air it creates static electricity, these wicks allow the electricity to disperse into the atmosphere.
If the lightning strikes the plane then that means the bolt of lightning has already found a path to ground and if the aircraft is in that path then it will be struck because it's already charged with electricity.
You will be surprised to know that in older times the Dakotas were supposed to be 'discharged' after landing. The pilot used to get a stick touched to the ground before all passengers were allowed to disembark. It still happens but discreatly through other mechanisms.
Further, now-a-days the paints on the aircraft surface are anti-static and don't allow it to get 'charged' from the clouds when it passes through them.
any doubters, look at this picture.
http://www.integument.com/images/lightni.
I was on an easi-jet flying to athens, when the flight was 30 minutes from landing i saw lightning comimg toward the aircraft,
it struck the plane between the engine & fuselage,making quite
a large noise,my partner disbelieved that I had seen it ,but the
captain immeditely came on the tanoid and said we had just been struck by lightning, there was absolutely no problem as all aircraft were designed to withstand it.
ralph
Yes, they do frequently. It is mollified by what are called static wicks, static dispersers mounted on the trailing edges of the wings and fin.
Yes it can happen. Airplanes taking off in a storm can be struck. My friend was on a flight when lightning knocked out one of the engines. They continued onto Chicago but the connecting flight to Boston was delayed. Also if the airplane is flying below the clouds, lightning can strike the aircraft.
Yes.
yes it will definitely happen so they will be equeped lightining arresters if ur so intrested chek out boeing.com in that tech feature
all the time
Yes, it could.
The "earthing" issue is wether or not lightning can electrocute you. If an electric source has a clear path from source to ground, it creates electrocution.
Lightning, as well as being a spark of charged particles, is so hot that it could spark fire on the plane.
How hot? Well, it can superheat the air particles to create a bang (Thunder)
Yes it can. The lightning will pass through an airplane with no problem. Conceivably through it's occupants as well. I have seen a jet engine ruined by lightning. While the engine continued to run after the strike, it had to be replaced because all of the bearings and many of the fan blades were burned.
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