Public Is Invited To Tour Hurricane Hunter Aircraft
NOAA hurricane experts will visit five U.S. East Coast cities
aboard a NOAA hurricane hunter aircraft to raise awareness about
storm threats and the danger of being caught without a personal
hurricane plan. The five-day tour begins May 2.
NOAA Hurricane Hunter In Beaumont, TX 2010
“The 2010 hurricane season was one of the most active on
record, yet no hurricanes made landfall in the U.S. That does
not mean we will be as fortunate during the 2011 season,”
said Bill Read, director of NOAA’s National Hurricane Center.
"Be prepared for a hurricane now, before one threatens your
area."
Read, along with senior hurricane specialist Daniel Brown and
storm surge team leader Jamie Rhome, will travel with the crew when
the aircraft visits airports in five cities the week of May 2nd The
public and media are invited to tour the aircraft and meet the
team.
The NOAA WP-3D Orion turboprop aircraft is used primarily by
scientists on research missions to study various elements of a
hurricane, flying through the eye of the storm several times each
flight. The crew collects and transmits data by satellite directly
to the National Hurricane Center so that forecasters can analyze
and predict changes to the hurricane’s path and strength.
Staff from local emergency management offices and the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, non-profit organizations such as the
American Red Cross, and several local NOAA National Weather Service
forecast offices will be part of the team at each stop.
File Photo
NOAA has conducted the hurricane awareness tour for almost 30
years, alternating between the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, and is
followed by NOAA’s hurricane hazard education campaign during
National Hurricane Preparedness Week, May 22 to 28. The Atlantic
hurricane season begins June 1.
The airports on the tour schedule are:
- May 2: Mass. Military Reservation, Falmouth, MA,
1430-1730.
- May 3: Patuxent River Naval Air Station, MD, 1330-1600.
- May 4: Cherry Point MCAS, NC, 1500-1700.
- May 5: International Airport, Savannah, GA, 1500-1700.
- May 6: Executive Airport, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 1500-1630.
The NOAA WP-3D Orion is part of the agency's fleet of highly
specialized research aircraft operated, managed and maintained by
the NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. The aircraft is
piloted by officers of the NOAA Corps — one of the seven
uniformed services of the United States — and based at the
NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, located at MacDill Air Force Base
in Tampa, FL.