Have you ever looked up at the sky and wondered, ” Can You Fly Through Cumulus Clouds?”
There are a lot of different kinds of clouds out there but the big puffy ones that look soft and fluffy are called cumulus clouds.
There are four types of cumulus clouds and we will discuss them in this article.
We will discover the secret of flying through cumulus clouds and the ones that can be deadly.
Can You Fly Through Cumulus Clouds?
Yes, you can fly through cumulus clouds however I highly recommend that anyone doing so be an instrument-rated pilot.
1. Flying Through Clouds
Flying through and above some clouds can be a lot of fun. Not only does it give you a sense of speed, but it also gives a view that is beautiful beyond measure.
One’s visual sense is definitely heightened when flying through cloud layers and bursting into the brilliant blue sky and all you can see is blue and magnificent white cloud tops.
This is most definitely not a place for the pilot who has no instrument rating due to the very dangerous and often fatal flight into IMC. (instrument meteorological conditions).
The danger is spatial disorientation.
It is important to point out that a non-instrument-rated pilot cannot legally fly through clouds. One may do so if they have the rating and file an IFR clearance. (Instrument Flight Rules).
2. What is Spatial Disorientation and Why is it Dangerous?
Spatial disorientation is when a person cannot determine his/her body attitude, speed, and altitude relative to their surroundings. Pilots and divers both may suffer from this sensory illusion.
From experience, I can attest to the subtle danger of this phenomenon and every pilot should experience it so that it can be recognized and overcome.
The danger of spatial disorientation is the mind is giving you false interpretations of reality. It can make you think that the information from the aircraft instruments is false.
3. Types of Spatial Disorientation,
There are three types of spatial disorientation, unrecognized. recognized and incapacitating. This condition is most prevalent at night or when the horizon is obscured by poor weather as sight is the major sense for orientation. Your balance.
‘Unrecognized” is dangerous because the pilot has no “feel” for what is happening in the aircraft which could easily result in an accident.
“Recognized” is still dangerous but since the pilot knows the situation is an illusion he/she has a chance of recovery. Reliance on the instruments is foremost in recovery.
“Incapacitating” is of course the most dangerous and will very likely result in an accident.
4. Types of Cumulus Clouds
The cumulus clouds in this discussion are low altitude clouds ranging from 6 to 8 hundred feet to 7000 feet above ground level, (AGL).
These are altitudes used primarily for private pilots (unless in mountainous terrain) with varying degrees of experience and without an instrument rating.
There are four types of cumulus clouds, cumulus humilis, mediocris, congestus, and fractus.
These clouds are all low-level “fluffy” clouds.
Cumulus humilus are convective clouds formed by rising warm air that look like cotton balls. They are “fair-weather clouds.”
Cumulus mediocris clouds are low to mid-level clouds that are higher in alyitude.
Cumulus congestis are low to mid-level clouds that can form towering cumulus clouds that can be dangerous. They can climb far faster than an aircraft.
Cumulus fractus clouds are ragged and small and usually form under a cloud base.
5. Cumulonimbus (Towering Cumulus) Clouds
Those soft and fluffy cumulus clouds seem so harmless but they can change from the pretty cloud into dangerous clouds, They are convective clouds that are thermal updrafts.
Cumulus mediocris clouds have vertical development (updrafts) and can rapidly develop into cumulus congestis clouds or cumulonimbus clouds which are thunderstorms.
Cumulonimbus clouds can form alone, sometimes in clusters or along a cold front creating squall lines. Squall lines can stretch for hundreds of miles.
The stuff of thunderstorms is powerful and these monsters climb like no other and can reach up to 100,000 feet. They are frightening and should be avoided. They can carry lightning, hail, heavy rain and at times tornados that can be embedded.
You can read more about aviation weather here.
Final Thoughts
I tried to out climb a thunderstorm in Texas in a 182 Cessna not long after I became a pilot with no instrument rating and learned very quickly that it is a really stupid thing to do, I was lucky that day
The soft and fluffy cumulus clouds are beautiful and fun to fly through but even these clouds will create turbulence, mostly just little bumps.
A pilot without an instrument rating should avoid all clouds as required by the FAA. Once an instrument rating is acquired and even in the process of acquiring one will afford the opportunity to fly in around and through clouds.
Avoid thunderstorms at all costs and remain safe.
Related: Can Commercial Planes Fly Over Hurricanes? (5 Hurricane Flying Facts)