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Nature’s power
- As the Emirates A380 flight came into Heathrow Airport, London, a jagged bolt of lightning smashed into the roof, right above the pilots’ heads.
The powerful jolt of electricity passed right through the body of the Airbus A380 before shooting out to continue its journey to the ground.
The Emirates flight from Dubai landed safely minutes later, with not even a scratch and its 500 passengers and crew unscathed. The image was captured by a photographer from southeast London.
According to David Learmount, operations and safety editor of website Flightglobal, it is not surprising that the Airbus A380, the world’s biggest commercial plane, escaped damage as planes are struck by lightning several times a year, mostly without damage.
‘They act as a conductor. Getting a good strike like this can look very dramatic but it might not make any impact. Manufacturers must make aircraft capable of withstanding a lightning strike and protecting those inside. It means the plane’s body must contain metal so it can act as a conductor, allowing the electricity to pass through it. Without the metal the plane could explode when hit.”
