Between 9,000 and 12,000 metres (30,000 and 40,000 feet), the cruising altitude of most jet aircraft, air temperatures range from -40 to -70 °F (-40 to -57 °C).
Most flights are intended to spend as little time as possible over water, since storms are more common over the ocean than on land. An aircraft would not be safe to fly over the Pacific Ocean due to the stormy weather and frequent lightning strikes that occur there.
Space is very, very cold. The baseline temperature of outer space is 2.7 kelvins — minus 454.81 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 270.45 degrees Celsius — meaning it is barely above absolute zero, the point at which molecular motion stops.
“There is not a specific temperature,” says Tom Haines, Senior Vice President of Media, Communications & Outreach at the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA).
But icing aside, cold air can help a plane take off and fly more efficiently. So why do planes perform better in cold weather? Simply, colder air is denser than warmer air, which contributes to engine performance and air lift.
Planes are *optimized* to fly at certain heights to maximize the efficiency of their engines and their fuel consumption. So jet planes can fly a lot higher than propeller planes, so they do. They fly between 20,000 feet and 40,000 feet because they are designed and optimized to do just that.
The primary reason airplanes don't fly over the Pacific Ocean is because curved routes are shorter than straight routes. Flat maps are somewhat confusing because the Earth itself isn't flat. Rather, it's spherical. As a result, straight routes don't offer the shortest distance between two locations.
The primary reason airplanes don't fly over the Pacific Ocean is because curved routes are shorter than straight routes. Flat maps are somewhat confusing because the Earth itself isn't flat. Rather, it's spherical. As a result, straight routes don't offer the shortest distance between two locations.
What is the longest flight in the world by distance? The longest flight in the world by distance is New York (JFK) to Singapore (SIN) on Singapore Airlines clocking in at 9,537 miles. What plane can fly the farthest in the world?
The only way a small plane hovers is to have the exact same forces acting on the aircraft on all directions while flying. As you may understand, this is completely impossible to happen on an engine airplane. There is no current commercial aircraft that can hover or stand in mid air.
Can a plane take off in a thunderstorm? Technically, it is possible, but pilots and air traffic experts prefer to keep planes on the ground when a storm is present and wait for it to calm down before setting off.
Ultimately, it is usually perfectly safe for planes to fly in storms. Today's aircraft, especially big passenger airplanes, are designed to deal with lightning strikes, rain, and other conditions. Plus, pilots haveextensive training in how to handle storms and can be trusted to make the right call.