How an airplane survives lightening while passing through the clouds ?

Answer 1

The aircraft is acting as a Faraday Cage to the occupants. However, aircraft regularly suffer surface damage from strikes. They also have parts built in to allow the strike to leave the aircraft easily.

The reference given goes in to more details, but according to that the last recorded aircraft crash in America due to lightning was 1967.

Interestingly connected to this, in the early days of aircraft flight several people were killed due to static buildup on the aircraft as it flew through the charged clouds and if this had not been discharged before someone stepped from the aircraft, they were killed by it discharging through them as they touched ground. As a result, early rubber aircraft tyres had graphite added to allow the charge to dissipate on landing or an earthing wire. Similarly, when early hydrogen filled airships came in to land, some poor sod had to use an earthing wire to a safe point on the airship to make sure the static electricity was safely discharged for obvious reasons.

Answer 2

Airplanes have outer metallic skin and energy holders in the burrows to alert on lightnings and surplus of energy in the foils. After a lightning has fallen behind an airplane it sends the extra energy upon the back and derails it out. It is known pilots enjoy lightnings and better flying should encourage them to avoid clouds and climb higher, to endure good view and treat passengers with confort not thrills. When the plane lands, the tires are not distressed because they were in compartments not down, making contact. The affected parts are lower fuselage and turbines, sometimes it seems oportune to shut down turbines for some five minutes after a charge is received.

Answer 3

The metal fuselage of the plane conducts electricity very well - so there is very little voltage difference between opposite walls inside the plane when it is struck by lightning. This is called the faraday cage effect. The same principle protects people inside a car when it is hit by lightning. A direct hit can melt a hole in the metal fuselage though, and if this happens to be on the wing it could (if powerful enough) open a hole into the fuel tank - resulting in a dangerous situation for the plane.

Answer 4

The airplane survives because the electric current is not able to transfer to the ground if the plane is in flight.

Answer 5

The downside does not might want to do with the type of plane, it relies upon upon the plane and pilot in question being qualified to fly lower than device Flight rules. Many pilots of propeller-pushed planes at the on the spot are not qualified to fly by skill of clouds and many small propeller pushed planes at the on the spot are not equipped to finish that. All jets and jet pilots have that qualification.

Answer 6

negatively charged lightning inside the clouds seeks positivley charged atoms to transfer its electricity to. since the plane is running through the negative electrons, it is negatively charged itself. I'm sure that if you look around enough, you will find soemthing on an airplane struck by lightning somewhere, in fact here is one. it's quite amazing.
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/pub/ltg/plane_japan.php

Answer 7

Lightning is caused coz of rubbing of clouds . by flying above the clouds it can survive

Answer 8

plane is made up of non-conductive materials, therefore airplane survives from lightening

Answer 9

There,s a lightning absorbing device preventing it get struck.

Answer 10

Sometimes they don't - the lightning bolt can damage equipment on the plane and cause it to crash.