Turbulence??

[Jeff Johnson]

So as you all know.  I recently sold my aerocommander 500s and will be moving into an Aerostar 601p.

Flying around in the 500s was for the most part very enjoyable,  however whenever the weather and wind whipped up I felt like I was all over the place turbulence wise. 

Was this because I was usually flying light?
Was I flying to fast in rough air?
Or was the big wing on the 500s just more susceptible to the motion of the air around me?

I ask only because the flying I’ve done in the Aerostar so far is a much more docile beast in turbulent air.  Is this normal??

And I’ll ask a better question
What’s the more seasoned pilots definition of:
Light turbulence
Moderate turbulence
Severe turbulence?

I think I’ve been in all three, but just want to compare notes.

Thanks

[Adam Frisch]

Aerostar rides very well in turbulence due to its high wing loading.

[donv]

It's been so long since I've flown the Aerostar that I don't really remember how it did in turbulence, but I would imagine it would do okay.

As for turbulence definitions:

Light-- it's not smooth, basically.
Moderate-- objects are displaced in the cabin. So you set something on the copilot seat, and the turbulence causes it to bounce.
Severe-- large, abrupt changes in altitude and airspeed.

The official definitions are here:

http://www.faraim.org/aim/aim-4-03-14-475.html

[Jeff Johnson]

Adam Don,

Perfect thanks
Except for extreme been in it.
Now I understand it. 

Loosing 2k feet really quickly without much control input I’d classify as severe

Most of my stuff in co-pilot sweet hit the roof!

[SKYFLYER]

It really comes down to paying close attention to what the equipment is in the report.

What would be minor or light chop to a 747-800 could or would be much greater to a Commander or Aerostar.

I have never owned an Aerostar, but I have just shy of 200hrs in one and I feel the Commander is a more stable platform in turbulence.
Just my one and a half cents worth

[Bruce Byerly]

What I remember:

Mod = definite strain against the belts
Severe = momentarily out of control

Neither of which I want to be flying in. Seems like turbulence gets over reported by some. But if you think a 500S has a bad ride in turbulence, you’d probably think a Baron/310/Seneca etc was a tilt-a-whirl.  An Aerostar has a high wing loading, the opposite of a 500S.

[Jeff Johnson]

I’m not saying the 500s was bad.  But maybe I just pushed it a bit and got bounced around a little bit more that I would like my passengers to experience.