01/28/2024

A Roaring Tailwind Just Hurled a Passenger Plane at 826 Miles Per Hour

An exceptional jet stream boosted a China Airlines flight over the Pacific

China Airlines Flight 5116 rocketed to a speed of 826 mph as it bolted eastward across the Pacific Ocean on Thursday, potentially breaking informal records for passenger travel. The commercial flight, which departed from Taipei, landed more than an hour early in Los Angeles, propelled by exceptionally strong tailwinds.

A roaring Pacific jet stream, supercharged by the El Niño climate pattern and moving at more than 250 mph, gave the flight a boost.

Official records for commercial flight speeds aren’t kept, but a recent article in Simple Flying said a British Air Boeing 747 flying near Greenland had set a record when it reached 825 mph in February 2020.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.