Hurricane Hunters showcase aircraft flown into storms ahead of hurricane season

Captain Nate Kahn, commanding officer of the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, provides a behind-the-scenes look at the aircraft used to fly into hurricanes.

LAKELAND, Fla. – Hurricane season is on the horizon, and NOAA’s Hurricane Hunters are ready to fly into any storms to keep Americans safe.

FOX Weather Correspondent Brandy Campbell spoke with Capt. Nate Kahn, commanding officer of the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, about the Hurricane Hunters and what it’s like to fly into a hurricane.

“Flying into the storms is an exercise in, I’d call it, nine hours of mild discomfort interspersed with two to three minutes of sheer and utter terror,” Kahn said to Campbell.

Capt. Nate Kahn.

(Brandy Campbell / FOX Weather)

He noted how, sometimes, conditions are such that the pilots are unable to see where they are going. Pilots also have to safely navigate the storms, even when conditions cause the aircraft to fly sideways.

“When you’re in 200 mph winds, it takes a significant angle to keep the plane moving in the right direction, which is part of the magic,” he said.

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Despite these conditions, Hurricane Hunters persevere for the sake of gathering life-saving information.

Kahn said that NOAA’s two P-3 Orion aircraft – affectionately called “Kermit” and “Miss Piggy” – have aboard a team of about eight researchers that collect and process data about the storms.

This data is then sent to NOAA’s National Hurricane Center, where the data is used by meteorologists to form forecasts for people who might be affected by the storms that Hurricane Hunters are studying.

While meteorologists at the NHC are developing forecasts, Hurricane Hunters have a meteorologist as part of their team. This individual helps the team stay safe during the flight.

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Hurricane season for the Eastern Pacific Ocean begins May 15, and the season for the Atlantic Ocean begins on June 1.