EPISODE · Jun 24, 2025 · 47 MIN
Hugo: The Most Violent Flight in Hurricane History
from Off the Radar · host The National Weather Desk
In September 1989, NOAA hurricane hunters became the first to encounter Hurricane Hugo—and nearly became its first victims. Flying at 1,500 feet, they hit G-Forces in the Category 5 storm's eyewall, losing control of the aircraft nearly plunging it into the ocean. The flight was so violent that some crew members never flew into another hurricane. Today we'll hear from Dr. Jeff Masters, the meteorologist who was on board that historic flight, then explore the science of measuring turbulence with Dr. Josh Wadler from Embry-Riddle, who has developed a metric to quantify how rough these flights get—and confirms this remains the most violent hurricane hunter flight on record. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
What this episode covers
In September 1989, NOAA hurricane hunters became the first to encounter Hurricane Hugo—and nearly became its first victims. Flying at 1,500 feet, they hit G-Forces in the Category 5 storm's eyewall, losing control of the aircraft nearly plunging it into the ocean. The flight was so violent that some crew members never flew into another hurricane. Today we'll hear from Dr. Jeff Masters, the meteorologist who was on board that historic flight, then explore the science of measuring turbulence with Dr. Josh Wadler from Embry-Riddle, who has developed a metric to quantify how rough these flights get—and confirms this remains the most violent hurricane hunter flight on record. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Hugo: The Most Violent Flight in Hurricane History
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