JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
The 12th Operations Support Squadron Weather Operations
Flight at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph attended the annual Hurricane
Awareness Tour, which kicked off May 16 at the San Antonio International Airport.
Hosted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office and
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Hurricane Center,
the HAT’s purpose is to increase public awareness about hurricane threats and
impacts before the start of hurricane season, which began Thursday.
Due to collaborative efforts between the 12th OSS and the
NWS, Alvin Hill, 12th OSS Weather Operations Flight chief, attended the event
as a VIP guest.
Hill said he was aware of the U.S. Air Force Reserve WC-130J Hercules, an aircraft used to collect weather reconnaissance
data by the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron at Keesler Air Force Base,
Miss., but did not know about the NOAA aircraft before attending the HAT.
“Each aircraft has different operating altitudes which
allows them to conduct simultaneous weather recon data collection,” Hill said.
“This helps tremendously in reducing the margin of error in the forecasted
storm movement and strength, which in turn benefits us, the local weather
forecaster, in providing accurate, timely and reliable tropical storm
information, which we relay to key senior leaders to make actionable decisions
regarding personnel or aircraft evacuation.”
When poor weather arises, the NWS Austin-San Antonio office
collaborates with the 12th OSS by providing “heads up” emails with expected
weather threats, timing and weather discussions. There is also severe weather
training, Skywarn, conducted annually by the NWS at JBSA-Randolph which teaches
personnel how to spot and report severe weather, Paul Yura, NWS Austin-San
Antonio warning coordination meteorologist, said.
“The NWS relies on these trained weather spotters to verify
the severe weather, such as hail wind or tornadoes, at the ground level,” Yura
said.
Yura also said because San Antonio is an inland city, people
don’t realize the impact that a land-falling tropical system can have and that
having HAT in San Antonio offers real benefits.
“Not only is San Antonio an evacuation spot for thousands of
coastal residents, we ourselves are vulnerable to the wind, rain and tornadoes
that a land-falling tropical system can bring,” Yura said. “In fact, inland
flooding is typically the No. 1 killer in tropical systems. The city of San
Antonio has a history of dealing with these tropical systems.”
Some key topics discussed during the event were having a
preparedness kit ready, having a conversation with family members before the
storm and making sure to double check insurance.
“Ultimately, this is really about people and families and
individuals,” Dr. Rick Knabb, NOAA’s National Hurricane Center director and HAT
keynote speaker, said. “I’ve got a home. I’ve got a wife and son. I’ve got
friends and family members in hurricane prone areas, and we want people doing
things now to get ready for the next hurricane, not waiting until the last
minute.”
HAT also gave the community the opportunity to learn about
the aircraft, the WC-130J and the NOAA Gulfstream IV, which are used to fly in
and around storms to gather data. The WC-130J Hurricane Hunter aircraft and the
NOAA G-IV were both on display and members of the aircraft’s crew were
available to answer questions and give tours.
Senior Master Sgt. Jay Latham, 53rd WRS loadmaster, said
there are 10 WC-130J aircraft with 20 crews located at Keesler Air Force Base
that are ready within a 16-hour lead time to hunt hurricanes.
“We fly right through the storm,” Latham said. “We don’t fly
over it or around it to gather the data we need; we fly right through at 10,000
feet, primarily during a strong hurricane. While we’re flying we’ll drop
instruments into the storm and measure the wind speed direction, temperature,
humidity and air pressure, and we’ll send all of that to the Hurricane Center
as fast as we can get it.”
While the WC-130J is flown through the storm, the NOAA’s
nine G-IVs are flown above and around the perimeter of the storm, Dr. Jim
McFadden, NOAA Aircraft Operations Center chief of programs, said.
“The Air Force airplane does just about all of the hurricane
reconnaissance and the Gulfstream does all of the hurricane surveillance,”
McFadden said. “We get about 20 to 25 percent improvement on forecasts of
storms on the data sent back from the Gulfstream.”
According to NOAA, the HAT has been conducted for more than
30 years, alternating between the U.S. Gulf and Atlantic coasts. The tour
continues through May 20 and also included stops in Galveston, Texas; New
Orleans, La.; Mobile, Ala.; and Naples, Fla.