Was Summer Heat To Blame for Wednesday’s Plane Tire Explosion in Tampa?

Record-breaking heat waves across America this summer may have consequences for travelers. Extreme heat has grounded planes in places like Las Vegas, resulting in a slew of delays at major airports.

But it was mechanical wear and tear, not Tampa Bay’s scorching July temperatures, that was most likely to blame after a tire on an American Airlines plane exploded during takeoff at Tampa International Airport last week, experts said.

Still, the region’s notorious summer heat and recent stretch of afternoon heat advisories generally don’t help aircraft performance, said Robert Thomas, an aviation professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

Here’s what travelers should know before taking off on vacation this summer.

How does heat affect airplane performance?

High temperatures make air molecules less dense, said Austen Flannery, a Florida meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Ruskin. That makes it harder for airplanes to thrust up into the air and off the ground.

More engine power is required to lift the plane through less-dense air, Flannery said. A plane flying through midday heat would require more time on the runway to build the power needed to get off the ground. Some standard runways may be too short, Thomas said. Tampa International has runways that range in length from roughly 7,000 feet to 11,000 feet.

Hot days also place extra limitations on aircraft capacity, Thomas said. The maximum weight an aircraft can carry is calculated based on air pressure, elevation, temperature, wind speed and other factors. If a plane is near capacity on a hot day, the flight could remain on the ground until temperatures drop or winds change, resulting in delays, Thomas said.

“If they’re too heavy, that’s when you have the fun conversation of dumping off suitcases or people to get the airplane to a weight that’s allowed,” he said.

Could Tampa Bay’s summertime heat affect takeoff from the airport?

Tampa Bay residents probably won’t be grounded due to the heat. That’s because of the Tampa area’s low elevation, Thomas said. Elevation is a major factor that worsens on-the-ground performance, he said. Humidity, which has made Tampa Bay temperatures feel as high as 112 degrees in recent weeks, doesn’t adversely affect plane performance as much.

“It’s hot, but we’re at sea level which means the air is more dense out here,” Thomas said. “It gets a little more interesting when you look at some of the places out West.”

Airlines may also try to minimize heat-related delays. Southwest Airlines, a major carrier at Tampa International, uses the newest planes in its fleet to ensure efficiency on hot days, said Chris Perry, a spokesperson for the airline. He said Southwest hasn’t experienced “widespread delays or cancellations” due to the heat.

While heat may not delay a takeoff in Tampa, it can make for an uncomfortably hot cabin, Thomas said. That’s because airplane cooling systems, built to be small and fuel-efficient, don’t function as well on the ground compared to the sky, where colder stratospheric air helps cool cabins down. Plane manufacturers aren’t inclined to weigh down planes with better A.C. systems, Thomas said.

A 2018 petition by the Association of Flight Attendants, a national union, said there are no federal guidelines on maximum cabin temperature. The petition included reports of cabin temperatures rising as high as 99 degrees Fahrenheit due to A.C. system failures.

Could flights elsewhere be canceled or delayed due to heat?

While flights in Tampa may not struggle to lift off due to the heat, flights coming from scorching, high-elevation cities like Denver and Salt Lake City could be delayed. It may be worthwhile to check where the flight is coming from if experiencing an unexpected delay.

Thomas said his recent flight from Salt Lake City, Utah, was delayed for an hour to wait out midday temperatures and lift off amid favorable winds. And in 2017, almost 50 regional American Airlines flights from Phoenix were canceled due to 119-degree temperatures.

Florida’s other major summertime problem is thunderstorms, said Flannery, the meteorologist. Planes can’t withstand thunderstorms, so they have to wait for the storm to pass before taking off. Storms at major hubs like Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C. can also cause delays and cancellations at other airports.

What actually happened with the American Airlines flight on Wednesday?

Thomas said he has two main predictions for why a tire blew during takeoff on American Airlines Flight 590 last week: the plane ran over something, like construction debris, or the tire was partially flat.

“Whatever happened that day I think would have happened regardless of temperature,” he said.

As a plane builds speed on the ground, the tires must rotate rapidly. Weak areas of an airplane tire couldn’t withstand high-speed rotation, Thomas said.

A spokesperson for American didn’t respond to requests for comment on what went wrong last week before publication.

Charles Horning, an aviation maintenance science professor at Embry-Riddle, said tires are built to operate in extreme temperatures. High outside temperatures wouldn’t affect a plane’s tires at all, he said.

Plane tire explosions are rare but they do happen, he said, often due to stress during takeoff or landing.

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