Plane flies into eye of Hurricane Delta

Plane flies into eye of Hurricane Delta

This is the dramatic moment a propellor plane encounters turbulence as it flies into the heart of a category-three hurricane.The video was posted by the United States Department of Defence on Twitter on 8th October.It shows the propellor plane, used by the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, nicknamed Hurricane Hunters, flying a reconnaissance mission to gather data about Hurricane Delta, which is currently closing in on the state of Louisiana.The data is vital in gauging the strength and speed of the Hurricane, in order to help people in its path to prepare.The images show huge clouds as well as frequent lightning strikes that illuminate the sky as they approach.The five-man crew made the flight over the Gulf of Mexico, where they were confronted with heavy cloud cover and numerous lightning strikes.The Hurricane Hunters' base is located in the city of Biloxi, Alabama.

However, the squadron has relocated to the city of San Antonio, Texas, to avoid the flight path of the hurricane, which had maximum sustained winds of 120 miles per hour on 9th October.The plane operated by the squadron is a Lockheed WC-130, which is 97 ft 9 in (29.79 m) in length, and has a wingspan of 132 ft 7 in (40.41 m).

Its maximum speed is 417 mph (670 km/h) at 22,000 ft (6,706 m).Hurricane Delta passed through Cozumel and Cancun, in south-eastern Mexico, on 7th October, causing roads to collapse and knocking out power to 266,000 homes and businesses.The US National Hurricane Center has warned of a "life-threatening storm surge" of up to 11 feet when it hits the US Gulf Coast.