Top 10 Most Turbulent Flights in the World; Mostly in China, Japan

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Turbulence is one of the things long-haul passengers dread most. This natural phenomenon can be more than just bothersome. In the worst case, violent vibrations can result in structural damage to the aircraft and even jeopardize passengers' safety.

Recently, the deadly turbulence on a Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore grabbed the global spotlight and sent people scrambling along the world's most unstable air routes.

Turbli, a turbulence forecasting site, analyzed more than 150,000 long-haul and short-haul flight records in 2023 to find out which flights encountered the most intense turbulence. It uses eddy dissipation rates (EDR) to determine the shock rating of each route, with levels of light (0-20), moderate (20-40), severe (40-80), and extreme (80-100).

So what are the most turbulent routes globally?

The flight path from Santiago, Chile, to Viru Viru International Airport in Santa Cruz, Bolivia is the most turbulent route in the world, with an average EDR of 17.5. In second place is the 338-kilometer short-haul flight from Almaty in Kazakhstan to its capital, Bishkek, with an EDR of 17.4.

Six of the world's ten most turbulent routes are situated in Japan and China, owing to the high jet stream activity in the region, which disrupts the air, according to Turbli.

In Europe, the worst turbulence was experienced on the 212-kilometer flight path from Milan to Geneva (EDR 16.3), ranking as the fifth most turbulent route globally. The American route with the highest turbulence was the 710-kilometer flight from Nashville to Raleigh, scoring an average EDR of 14.7.

Here is a list of the top 10 most turbulent flights in the world:

1. Santiago (SCL) - Santa Cruz (VVI)

2. Almaty (ALA) - Bishkek (FRU)

3. Lanzhou (LHW) - Chengdu (CTU)

4. Centrair (NGO) - Sendai (SDJ)

5. Milan (MXP) - Geneva (GVA)

6. Lanzhou (LHW) - Xianyang (XIY)

7. Osaka (KIX) - Sendai (SDJ)

8. Xianyang (XIY) - Chengdu (CTU)

9. Xianyang (XIY) - Chongqing (CKG)

10. Milan (MXP) - Zurich (ZRH)

DAILY MAIL

Editor's Choice: Singapore Airlines Incident, Here's How to Stay Safe During Turbulence on a Plane

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