WeatherFanatics: Storms to Plague AirAsia Flight 8501 Recovery Area Into Weekend

Monday, January 5, 2015

Storms to Plague AirAsia Flight 8501 Recovery Area Into Weekend

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

January 5,2015; 8:28PM,EST

Amid treacherous conditions due to consistent storms, officials have recovered more than 30 remains from AirAsia Flight 8501.
Still, adverse weather continues to plague the area and hinder additional recovery missions.
On Jan. 5, AirAsia officials said weather remains the primary challenge for operations with some waves reaching as high as 4 to 5 meters (13.1 to 16.4 feet) during Monday efforts.
According to AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Tyler Roys, storms will continue to impact recovery efforts into the weekend.
"There will still be storms, but they will weaken into the evening before firing up again in the morning," he said.
Though still disruptive, the storms will not create as adverse conditions as divers and other officials endured last week. Roys expects waves to hit near the 1.5 meter (4.9 feet) mark this week as a result of the hovering storms.

Lightning, downpours, gusty winds and choppy seas from the thunderstorms could force additional disruptions to crews.
There could be breaks between the thunderstorms, but lengthy stretches of dry weather that would greatly benefit crews is not anticipated.
Thunderstorms were along the path of Flight QZ8501 on the morning of Dec. 27, AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Dave Samuhel said.
"It's very active this time of year. December and January are the wettest times of the year in Indonesia," Samuhel said.
RELATED:
Indonesia Weather Center
Malaysia Weather Center
AccuWeather.com Tropical Cyclone Center
Air traffic controllers lost contact with Flight QZ8501 at 7:24 a.m. Sunday, local time, after takeoff from the Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, the airline said on its Facebook page.
The aircraft was on its submitted flight plan route and the pilot asked for permission from air controllers to fly at a higher altitude due to weather.
The plane had been flying at an altitude of 9,753 meters (32,000 feet). The pilot asked to climb to 11,582 meters (38,000 feet).
Air controllers refused the request to go to a higher altitude because of another plane at that altitude but did allow a turn to the left, an Indonesia government official told Kompas, an Indonesia newspaper.

The storms in the area were capable of producing severe turbulence, strong wind shear, frequent lightning and icing, AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. Wind shear is a rapid change in wind direction and speed over a short distance.
"It is for these reasons that pilots may request permission to deviate from their flightpath by going around or above the weather," Sosnowski said.
New information discovered by the Indonesia Weather Agency suggests that icing may have been one of the main factors in plane's crash, according to the Wall Street Journal.
AirAsia stated that 162 people were aboard Sunday's Flight QZ8501.
AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Courtney Spamer, Staff Writer Mark Leberfinger and Staff Writer Katy Galimberti contributed to the content of this story.

On Social Media

Tweets for this article AccuWeather Updates