Over the past few hours, Air Calédonie has been sending its entire fleet to Brisbane, Australia. According to local reports, the airline is protecting its fleet against the incoming cyclone Niran, which has a maximum wind of 204 km / h.
The movement of the planes from the path of the cyclone
Currently, tropical cyclone Niran is moving southeast across the Coral Sea in the direction of New Caledonia. Earlier today, the cyclone center was about 980 kilometers northwest of the Belep Islands in New Caledonia. It had a maximum wind of 204 km / h.
According to local sources, Niran is expected to pass along the west coast of western New Caledonia on March 6. The maximum sustained wind can reach speeds of 210 km / h.
As a result, the French Collectivity has issued a level 2 cyclone warning and expects heavy rain, strong winds and high waves.
Air Calédonie, the local carrier, wasted no time. According to statistics from RadarBox.com, the airline moved its four ATR aircraft to Brisbane, Australia, on March 5.
The four planes landed at Brisbane International Airport between 18:43 and 20:43, Australian Eastern Time.
We contacted Air Calédonie for more information. So far we have not received any answer. We will keep you informed if this changes.
What should an airline do to face a hurricane?
Hurricanes and cyclones can be disruptive to airline operations. We mostly hear of airlines issuing travel departures and canceling flights due to weather forecasts.
But they also protect their planes by sending them to safe places. Not every plane. Flying every plane away from the storm is not very economical as commercial operations are halting at the drop of a hat.
Nevertheless, Air Calédonie can do it because it has had minimal operation over the past few months. According to RadarBox.com, Air Caledonia’s ATR fleet has flown an average of 1.2 hours a day over the past year.
How do airlines prepare themselves for hurricanes and cyclones?
Fortunately, forecasts can now predict the general trace of a cyclone a few days in advance. This enables the airlines to make critical decisions and keep everyone safe.
The first step an airline takes when a tropical cyclone is forecast is to issue a travel exemption, WorldAware said. This enables passengers to protect themselves against unexpected cancellations.
As the storm approaches, airlines are beginning to make massive flight cancellations, scraping every operation out of airports expected to be hit by cyclones or hurricanes.
Meanwhile, the airlines are trying to book passengers on earlier flights and bring them to safety.
When they fly, pilots usually do not hold hurricanes. They do this by either flying above the storms or flying around.
Aircraft aircraft nevertheless rarely fly over hurricanes, as it also poses an incredible risk and limits the pilots in an emergency.
A brief history of Air Caledonia
Air Calédonie is a small but historic airline in Oceania. It was established in 1954 and uses the Nouméa Magenta airport as the main hub.
In the first 60 years of history, Air Calédonie carried a total of 10 million passengers, the carrier said.
It currently has a fleet of four ATR aircraft, with an average age of 3.8 years. According to its website, it has three destinations: the island of Pines, Loyalty Islands and the Northern Province.
Have you traveled with Air Calédonie yet? How was it? Let us know in the comments.