Abstract

Low-altitude windshear is recognized by the commercial aviation industry as a major hazard. In the United States, during the period 1964 to 1985, windshear was a contributing factor in at least 26 civil transport incidents and 3 accidents, involving 500 fatalities and 200 injuries. On a single day, in July 1988, windshear caught four jetliners at Denver/Stapleton Airport and dropped one of them within 100 feet of the ground. The FAA has now mandated that all commercial aircraft have some kind of windshear warning devices onboard by 1994, or a predictive, forward-looking device by 1996.

© 1991 Optical Society of America