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A B747-400 pilot reported encountering wake turbulence from an A380 at FL360 on an oceanic flight.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 892753 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201006 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.ARTCC |
| State Reference | US |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B747-400 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Not Flying |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 250 Flight Crew Total 17000 Flight Crew Type 3600 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Inflight Event / Encounter Wake Vortex Encounter |
Narrative:
Our aircraft suddenly encountered moderate rolling turbulence similar to the type of turbulence caused by aircraft wake. Seatbelt sign was off since we had been in smooth air for some time and there were no other reasons to have it on. Turbulence began and ended within 2 seconds followed by more smooth ride. No damage to the aircraft or injuries to passengers occurred. The only explanation for this encounter was a foreign carrier A380 19 miles ahead at FL370 on a different however somewhat parallel routing. (1;000 ft above us). Our offset (slop) was no help in this situation since the A380 flight had different waypoints that crossed our flight plan at numerous places. We confirmed this routing with the A380 crew on 123.45 and plotted their flight plan in our route 2. We requested and were granted numerous offsets to avoid another potential encounter. We also maintained at least 2;000 ft vertical separation from the A380 for the same reason.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A B747-400 pilot reported encountering wake turbulence from an A380 at FL360 on an oceanic flight.
Narrative: Our aircraft suddenly encountered moderate rolling turbulence similar to the type of turbulence caused by aircraft wake. Seatbelt sign was off since we had been in smooth air for some time and there were no other reasons to have it on. Turbulence began and ended within 2 seconds followed by more smooth ride. No damage to the aircraft or injuries to passengers occurred. The only explanation for this encounter was a foreign carrier A380 19 miles ahead at FL370 on a different however somewhat parallel routing. (1;000 FT above us). Our offset (SLOP) was no help in this situation since the A380 flight had different waypoints that crossed our flight plan at numerous places. We confirmed this routing with the A380 crew on 123.45 and plotted their flight plan in our RTE 2. We requested and were granted numerous offsets to avoid another potential encounter. We also maintained at least 2;000 FT vertical separation from the A380 for the same reason.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.