Lightning advisories protect crew and guests at YYC

It’s that time of year when hot days bubble up weather systems in the afternoon, often resulting in rain, thunder and lightning.

According to Environment Canada, the City of Calgary sees an average of 26 strikes a year, the most in all of Alberta. Aircraft, equipment and people are easy targets for these electrical storms. That’s why lightning advisories are vital to keeping everyone safe. 

YYC’s Integrated Operations Centre (IOC) is responsible for the Airport’s lightning advisory service. The IOC monitors a real-time lightning system which measures the local atmospheric electrical field and displays local strikes as they occur. The IOC produces three types of notifications for lightning:

• Pre-alert at 17 nautical miles (nm), which is about 19 kilometres (km) - prepare for a potential lightning advisory.
• Alert at six nm, which is about 11 km - caution, lightning in the area, and
• Issue lightning advisory at three nm, which is about 5 km - lightning activity at the airport.

During a lightning advisory, most of our apron operators suspend ground operations. This results in delays for arriving and departing aircraft, and baggage onloading/offloading. Our Advanced Visual Docking and Guidance System (A-VDGS) plays an important role during lightning advisories, bringing aircraft in to the gate to offload passengers in the safest manner.

Messages communicating the advisory are sent on xMatters, the Terminal P.A. system, FID screens, and on the Authority’s social media channels. 

Lightning advisories may continue after the visible lightning strikes have stopped. This is due to high atmospheric electrical field measurements that suggest there is still a potential for lightning to strike and the IOC will lift the advisory once those measurements return to normal.

While the delays can be frustrating to guests, the consequences are deadly. Environment Canada says every year in the country, there are about 164 injuries and 10 deaths connected to lightning.