IBM and Gogo team up to provide automated turbulence warnings to pilots

IBM’s The Weather Co. has reached a deal with in-flight Wi-Fi provider Gogo to provide real-time turbulence reports to pilots and airline dispatch and operations personnel. Mark Gildersleeve, president of business solutions at The Weather Co., said that Gogo will be implementing Weather’s patented Turbulence Auto PIREP (pilot report) System (TAPS), a turbulence detection algorithm, on Gogo’s aircraft-based communications server.

“Leveraging Gogo’s expanded fleet of aircrafts, The Weather Company can quickly share real-time turbulence data directly with pilots and dispatchers, thereby improving crew and passenger safety,” said Gildersleeve in a press release. “It is a great example of the Internet of Things in action, where we are collecting massive amounts of data very quickly and then using that insight to provide guidance to all flights that will be traveling through impacted air space.”

“In this increasingly connected world, it’s no longer just about passenger connectivity; we have to consider all the other ways we can leverage the available technology to enhance the overall flight experience and improve safety—such as a connected aircraft,” added Andrew Kemmetmueller, vice president of connected aircraft services, Gogo. “Our ability to provide access to real-time data through our network will help pilots and operations teams improve flight planning, and ultimately, help airlines deliver the best in-flight customer experience throughout a flight.”

IBM said that each year, turbulence incidents cost airlines approximately $100 million due to crew and passenger injuries, unscheduled maintenance, operational inefficiencies, and revenue lost while planes are out of service.

Currently, pilots report turbulence conditions to dispatchers on the ground, who relay the reports to other pilots who may be affected. IBM and Gogo will automate the process using data from sensors already on an aircraft.

Rachael King at The Wall Street Journal reports, “Gogo…will offer to outfit planes with a dedicated Internet connection that connect to servers on the ground. The system will pick up evidence of turbulence from sensors already on a plane and relay it to Watson Internet of Things computers, along with the plane’s location.”

IBM said pilots could use TAPS as drivers use navigation apps to steer around traffic jams. King quotes Cameron Clayton, CEO and general manager of The Weather Co., as saying, “What Waze does for cars, we do for airlines.”