Aviators: Is there such thing as an air pocket?

Question

A CFII I know says no, but Im not so sure?

Answer 1

The answer from the pilot is almost correct; it is any movement in the air, not only a downdraught.

Perhaps the best way to think of it is to imagine it in the same way as waves or swell in the sea.

There are more extreme forms of this phenomenon, such as microbursts, mountain wave forms etc

Answer 2

An "air pocket" is simply a catch-all term used to describe a small volume of air that has certain characteristics that may be different than the surrounding air.

For instance, on a hot, sunny day, the ground heats up the air adjacent to it. This blob of warmer air then begins to rise. the could be describes as a pocket of ascending air, and is the primary cause for most of the thunderstorms we see.

Answer 3

"air pocket" is a misnomer for columns of air moving either up or down in relation to the surrounding air. Aircraft flying thru these columns experience sudden altitude gain or loss accordingly and this loss or gain may be from mild to severe. I have been thrown against the upper cross tubes of the cabin of PA-18s quite frequently as well as pushed deep into the seat cushion.

Answer 4

It is a downdraft.
It is a confusing name because it isnt a pocket. It is a stream of air moving differently from nearby air. Rising air masses can create rotors and the air moves up on one side and down on the other and is relatively still in the middle.
Picture a rotating mass and just like a wheel one side moves up and the other down.
Makes for a bumpy ride when you fly through them.

Answer 5

Yes

Answer 6

The CFI is correct but a good CFI would have given you a complete answer as several responders did.

Answer 7

It is an oldtime term for a small turbulent air mass.

Answer 8

yes i think it has to do with an air current