Taiwan was hit hard when Typhoon Soudelor made landfall this month. The mega-storm brought with it sustained 120 mph winds with some gusts topping 145 mph at the time it reached Japan. Videos of a China Airlines cargo airplane being repeatedly lifted off of the ground while riding out the storm have surfaced online.
From Popular Mechanics:
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This isn’t the first time a massive plane has been caught on video being rocked by heavy winds, but a stripped down shell doesn’t nearly compare to seeing a storm pick up a flight-ready cargo Boeing 747 that could weigh upwards of 970,000 lbs., and would still weigh in around 400,000 lbs. even without fuel or cargo.
Depending on the weight, it typically takes as much as 180 mph to get a Boeing 747 airborne. But a lighter version could be lifted by airspeed as low as 130 mph, which is evident here by the bouncing nose wheel.
Next time, hopefully, our hero can find a home inside a hangar before the wrath of the gods rolls in.
