Here's What Actually Happens When Lightning Strikes A Plane In Flight

I’m not an anxious flyer, but even I have to admit that the idea of a plane being struck by lightning mid-air terrifies me.

Perhaps it shouldn’t – after all, thehttps://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-planes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> National Weather Service of America said most commercial planes “are hit by lightning an average of one or two times a year.” 

But why does it happen, and is it even dangerous for the passengers and crew inside?

There’s a LOT more lightning than I realised

Most lightning strikes to planes occur at altitudes between 5,000 and 15,000 feet,https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-planes"> Simple Flying shared.

That’s because takeoff and landing is when the vehicles pass through clouds, https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/storms/thunder-and-lightning#:~:text=The%20top%20of%20the%20cloud,the%20cloud%20becomes%20negatively%20charged.">which are electrically charged.

Edward Rupke, senior engineer at Lightning Technologies, Inc. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-happens-when-lightni/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">told Scientific American that planes actually trigger lightning strikes as they pass through non-striking, but electrically-charged, clouds.

“Actually, aircraft often initiate the strike because their presence enhances the ambient electric fields typical for thunderstorms and facilitates electrical breakdown through air,” the https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-planes">US National Weather Service explained.

The strike attaches itself to an extremity like the nose or tip of the plane first.

Then, the electricity moves along the outer “skin” of the plane as it flies through the strike, eventually leaving the body of the plane when it leaves the polarity.

Is it dangerous?

It used to be. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-happens-when-lightni/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">1967 was the last noted commercial plane crash due to a lightning strike – the contact caused the fuel tank to explode.

Nowadays, however, planes are madehttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-happens-when-lightni/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> from seamless aluminium or even more advanced composite materials that conduct electricity well enough to keep them away from the sensitive parts of the plane.

Occasionally, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-happens-when-lightni/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">pilots might notice flickering lights or very brief interference.

“When it is suspected that a plane was hit by lightning, there is a mandatory inspection for damage, which can delay flights and be quite expensive,” https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-planes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the US National Weather Service revealed.

So, for that reason, pilots try to steer clear of thunderstorms.