Spirit Airlines Flew A Plane Over Hurricane Erin, Promises It Was Fine

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The champion hurricane is nan 1 that ne'er makes landfall. There mightiness still beryllium terrible flooding on nan coast, but nan worst demolition is avoided. Seemingly, a brace of pilots decided to brushwood nan separator of a monolithic large wind astatine sea. A Spirit Airlines formation flew complete Hurricane Erin connected Monday while it was a Category 4 storm. The Florida-based low-cost carrier stated that nan plane's formation unit safely navigated supra nan hurricane. It's apt nan passengers had nary thought that nan turbulence they were experiencing was a tropical cyclone pinch winds whipping astatine complete 130 miles per hour.

Did Spirit return up nan Hurricane Hunter mission? pic.twitter.com/OhYEPg9hl0

— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) August 18, 2025

Spirit Airlines Flight NK 2298 flew from Philadelphia to San Juan, Puerto Rico. The way took nan level down nan Eastern Seaboard and done nan Bermuda Triangle. The canary yellowish Airbus A320 was flying astatine 37,000 feet arsenic it approached nan confederate separator of nan hurricane adjacent nan extremity of nan four-hour flight. The altitude was reportedly precocious capable to debar nan worst winds from nan upwind strategy and nan level landed safely pinch nary injuries. Spirit Airlines told USA Today:

"Safety is ever our apical priority. Our pilots followed procedures and Air Traffic Control (ATC) instructions while en way to San Juan (SJU). Our Operations Control Center intimately tracks upwind systems and useful pinch our pilots and ATC to find formation paths that safely navigate astir aliases supra adverse upwind conditions."

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There are craft that are tasked pinch flying straight done hurricanes. They aren't operated by Spirit Airlines and you can't bargain a summons to alert connected them. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration operates a mini fleet of Hurricane Hunter planes. It's precisely what it sounds like. The agency takes a level laden pinch sensors and flies it done a large wind to cod information for forecasters. The Lockheed WP-3D Orion, 1 of nan models used, was primitively designed to hunt submarines. The formation tin beryllium unsmooth arsenic nan utmost turbulence rattles nan plane, throwing things astir nan cabin.

Enduring a Hurricane Hunter formation is astir apt easier than dealing pinch Spirit's financial predicament. In a quarterly SEC filing, nan hose admitted that it mightiness not past nan adjacent 12 months if thing changes. Spirit mislaid $245.8 cardinal complete this year's 2nd quarter, citing nan debased request for leisure travel. The hose revenge for bankruptcy past twelvemonth successful nan aftermath of its merger pinch JetBlue being changeable down successful national tribunal connected antitrust grounds. Spirit is still struggling to make it done a spot of unsmooth aerial financially.