The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced at IATA’s 79th General Assembly that ANA and WestJet have joined the Turbulence Aware Platform. 
Turbulence Aware was launched in 2018 to help airlines reduce the impact of turbulence, a major annual cause of passenger and crew injuries, and higher fuel costs. The platform collects anonymized turbulence data from thousands of flights operated by participating airlines. Real-time and accurate information helps pilots and dispatchers choose optimal flight paths, avoid turbulence and maximize fuel efficiency, thereby reducing CO2 emissions and flying at optimal altitudes.
The challenge of managing turbulence is expected to increase as climate change continues to alter weather patterns. This has implications for both the safety and performance of the aircraft. Turbulence Aware is a major improvement in reporting turbulence and avoiding excessive fuel consumption.
“Accurate and timely data helps crews improve safety by avoiding turbulence. The more contributors we have, the more the benefits are for everyone. The addition of ANA and WestJet expands our coverage, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region and North America,” said Walsh. Currently, 20 airlines participate in the IATA Turbulence Aware Platform, with more than 1,900 flights providing data daily. In 2022, a total of 31 million reports were generated.
ANA will initially provide data from its Boeing 737 aircraft, with plans to expand to other parts of the fleet in the future.
WestJet already collects data from 24 aircraft and will expand to 60 aircraft over the next 3 years.
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