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Polar express: How airlines are plotting a new route to Asia

The issue is finest illustrated by Finnair’s flight from Helsinki to Tokyo. Earlier than the invasion of Ukraine, planes from Finland’s nationwide provider would take off and rapidly veer into the airspace of neighboring Russia, crossing it for over 3,000 miles.
They might then enter China close to its northern border with Mongolia, fly in its airspace for about 1,000 miles, earlier than getting into Russia once more simply north of Vladivostok.
Lastly, they’d cross the Sea of Japan and switch south in direction of Narita Airport. The journey would take just below 9 hours on common and canopy almost 5,000 miles.
The final such flight departed on February 26. The following day, Russia barred Finland from utilizing its airspace, forcing the short-term cancellation of most of Finnair’s Asian locations, together with South Korea, Singapore and Thailand.
Previous to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many airways traversed Russian airspace.
FlightRadar24
By that time, nonetheless, the airline’s route planners had lengthy been at work to discover a answer. “We made the primary very tough calculation about two weeks earlier than the precise closure of the airspace,” says Riku Kohvakka, supervisor of flight planning at Finnair.
The answer was to fly over the North Pole. As a substitute of heading southeast into Russia, planes would now depart Helsinki and go straight north, heading for the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, earlier than crossing over the pole and Alaska.
Then they’d veer in direction of Japan flying over the Pacific, rigorously skirting Russian airspace. That is not as easy as earlier than: The journey now takes over 13 hours, covers roughly 8,000 miles, and makes use of 40% extra gasoline.
Security first

Finnair’s Flight AY73 routes earlier than and after the closure of Russian airspace.
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Finnair began flying through the polar path to Japan on March 9. So, how does an airline utterly redesign one among its longest flights in simply over every week?
“All main airways have their very own computerized flight planning system, which they use to plan routes and alter them,” explains Kohvakka. Within the software program, the airspace of particular nations might be crossed out and waypoints might be manually inserted to assist it calculate different routes.
The following step is a brand new operational flight plan, which tells the crew what the deliberate route is, how a lot gasoline they want, how a lot the aircraft can weigh and so forth.
“From expertise, we knew we had two prospects: one through the north, and one through the south,” says Kohvakka.
Along with the polar route, Finnair may attain Japan by flying south of Russia — over the Baltics, Poland, Slovak Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan to China, Korea after which to Japan. It is longer, but when wind circumstances are significantly favorable it may be used, leading to an analogous flight time.
Then, gasoline consumption information, along with navigational charges, is used to estimate the price for the flight.
“After that, we have to test what sort of terrain we’re flying over. For instance, to see if the elevation at any level of the route requires particular planning, in case we lose an engine or pressurization — one thing that’s at all times thought-about when making ready a flight,” Kohvakka says.
As soon as the brand new route is accepted, the main focus shifts to plane gear and the related processes and laws.
Amongst them is one known as ETOPS (“Prolonged-range Twin-engine Operational Efficiency Requirements”), which dates again to the Fifties, when plane engines have been much less reliable and extra vulnerable to failing. ETOPS is a certification offered to plane that decided how far a aircraft with solely two engines may fly from the closest airport, in case it wanted an emergency touchdown on account of engine failure. “We have to have an appropriate airport the place we are able to divert to inside a sure time restrict,” says Kohvakka.
The regulation was initially set to 60 minutes, however as airplanes grew extra reliable, it was steadily prolonged. Only a few weeks in the past, Finnair was working below the broadly adopted ETOPS 180 rule, which meant that its twin-engine plane may fly as much as three hours away from the closest airport at any time.
The brand new Arctic route, nonetheless, flies over very distant areas, the place airports are few and much between. Consequently, the airline needed to apply for an extension of that protocol to 300 minutes, which means the Airbus A350-900s it makes use of to fly to Japan can now stray so far as 5 hours away from the closest airport, whereas nonetheless assembly all worldwide laws and security protocols.
Chilly Struggle route

Japan Airways’ London to Tokyo service earlier than and after the beginning of the battle.
FlightRadar24
Airways routinely cope with closure of airspace, for instance throughout spacecraft launches and army drills, and prior conflicts have curtailed or halted flight over Afghanistan, Syria, and Pakistan. A closure of this magnitude, nonetheless, has not occurred since Chilly Struggle instances.
As a result of overflight rights are negotiated between nations reasonably than particular person airways, Russia and Finland secured an settlement solely in 1994, two years after the Soviet Union disintegrated.
Beforehand, Finnair, like most different European airways, didn’t fly over the Soviet Union in any respect. When it started operations to Tokyo in 1983, it additionally flew throughout the North Pole and Alaska.
“So this route is just not completely new to us,” says Kohvakka. Finnair was the primary airline to fly the route nonstop, utilizing DC-10 plane, whereas most others on the time had a refueling cease in Anchorage.
The brand new route will increase gasoline consumption by a whopping 20 tons, making the flights environmentally and financially difficult. For that cause Finnair is prioritizing cargo, the place demand is stronger, and limiting passenger capability to simply 50 seats (the Airbus A350-900s used on the flights may carry as much as 330 individuals).
“The additional journey size will make fewer flights economically viable,” says Jonas Murby, an aviation analyst at Aerodynamic Advisory. “They develop into very depending on a excessive mixture of premium passengers and high-yield cargo; this in an atmosphere the place total demand for journey alongside these routes remains to be comparatively low. I doubt this shall be a broadly adopted technique.”
Japan Airways is to date the one different airline utilizing the polar route for its flights between Europe and Japan. The London to Tokyo service now flies over Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Iceland, which has elevated the typical flight time from simply over 12 hours to about 14 hours and half-hour, in line with Flightradar24.
Northern lights

The A350 is claimed to be significantly resilient to chilly temperatures.
Finnair
An additional 4 hours of flight time additionally has an influence on passengers and crew, additional growing prices.
“Often we fly to Japan with a crew of three pilots,” explains Aleksi Kuosmanen, deputy fleet chief pilot at Finnair, who can also be a captain on the brand new flights. “Now we function it with 4 pilots. We’ve got a particular flight crew bunk the place we are able to sleep and have a relaxation, and we now have additionally elevated the variety of meals.”
Passengers have reacted cheerfully to the brand new route, in line with Kuosmanen.
“I’d say that folks have been enthusiastic,” he stated. “Many have been asking at what time we’d be going throughout the pole and if northern lights have been anticipated.”

Finnair is giving out “diplomas” and stickers to certify passengers have flown over the North Pole.
Finnair
There’s additionally a bonus to having a 300-seater capped at simply 50 passengers: “I had a stroll by means of the cabin through the evening and… to illustrate, that they had house.”
Finnair can also be giving out stickers and “diplomas” that certify to passengers that they’ve flown over the North Pole.
Technically, the polar route does not pose any additional security dangers.
“Chilly climate might be the very first thing that involves thoughts, and it is true that there are areas with chilly air plenty at excessive altitude, however we’re pretty used to this after we fly northern routes to Tokyo within the Russian airspace anyway,” says Kuosmanen.
One situation could possibly be that the gasoline temperature turns into too low, however the A350 is especially resilient in opposition to chilly air, Kuosmanen says, which makes it superb for the route.
There are different minor quibbles. For instance, satellite tv for pc voice communications do not cowl the entire Arctic area, so crews need to depend on HF radio, a know-how that’s virtually 100 years previous.
Along with that, there are areas with robust magnetic radiation to be thought-about through the flight.
“We’ve got previous magnetic compass within the plane, along with a number of trendy navigational aids, and it went slightly bit haywire whereas we have been flying over the magnetic North Pole,” says Kuosmanen. (This causes no hurt to the plane in any respect).
Total, from a pilot standpoint, the polar route makes issues extra fascinating, however does not basically alter the job.
“The polar space might be the place each pilot who flies long-haul desires to function,” says Kuosmanen. “However as soon as one is nicely ready and nicely briefed, it is simply one other day on the workplace.”
High picture: Finnair is routing flights to Asia over the North Pole. Credit score: Finnair

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Texas Flooding Map: See How the Floodwaters Rose Along the Guadalupe River

In the early hours of July 4, floods swept through Hill Country, a region of Central Texas also known as “Flash Flood Alley.” Its propensity for high levels of rainfall combined with thin soil, exposed bedrock and steep terrain make it especially vulnerable. Rainfall gets funneled through the hilly terrain and canyons into the valleys of the region.
By 1 a.m. Friday, the Weather Service said a very dangerous flash flood event was unfolding in Kerr County, and rainfall rates were reaching up to three to four inches an hour with no indication of easing. The Guadalupe River rose 20 feet in three hours, according to data from a river gauge near Hunt. By 10 a.m., it swelled in the town of Comfort, surging to 34 feet from three feet in about 90 minutes.
In under 10 hours, from the late evening of July 3 to the pre-dawn hours of July 4, the flow rate of the Guadalupe River went from that of a small stream you could wade across (about 10 cubic feet per second), to a raging and destructive torrent of 120,000 cubic feet per second, according to a New York Times analysis. That’s greater than the average flow rate across Niagara Falls.
The floods washed away cabins, R.V.s and cars and toppled down large trees. In its rush downstream, the river ravaged Camp Mystic, a girls’ summer camp in Kerr County, where at least 27 campers and counselors were killed in the floods.
At least 75 of those killed in the floods were in Kerr County, northwest of San Antonio, authorities said. Other people were killed in Travis County, Burnet County, Kendall County, Williamson County and Tom Green County.
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4 things to know about the deadly Texas floods and ongoing search efforts

Search and recovery workers dig through debris at Camp Mystic near Hunt, Texas, on Sunday.
Jim Vondruska/Getty Images
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Jim Vondruska/Getty Images
After a weekend of catastrophic flooding in central Texas, search operations continue as questions swirl about whether officials could have done more to warn people before the river’s rapid rise.
The Guadalupe River swelled more than 26 feet in less than an hour early Friday morning, sweeping low-lying homes, cars and trees downstream and washing away much of Camp Mystic, an all-girls’ Christian summer camp.

At least 78 people are dead and another 41 are known to be missing, officials said on Sunday. Emergency responders have so far rescued hundreds of people by boat, truck and helicopter.
But search efforts have been complicated by fallen debris, heat, snakes and continued rainfall. Flash floods killed at least 11 people in the Austin region on Saturday, and a flood watch is in effect in through Monday evening in south central Texas, including the embattled Kerrville area.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said on Sunday that the state is broadening its area of focus for rescue efforts — citing the lives lost “in the greater region” — but pledged that Kerrville remains a top priority.

“We will remain 100% dedicated, searching for every single one of the children who were at Camp Mystic as well as anybody else in the entire riverbed to make sure that they’re going to be recovered,” Abbott said.
President Trump signed a federal disaster declaration on Sunday to help with those efforts, and said he will visit the state this week. Here’s what else we know so far.
1. The death toll is expected to rise
The death toll in hardest-hit Kerr County includes 40 adults and 28 children, Sheriff Larry Leitha said on Sunday.
Camp Mystic, located on the banks of the Guadalupe River some 18 miles from Kerrville, says it is grieving the loss of 27 campers and counselors. Separately, the death of the camp director was confirmed by family.
The century-old institution was hosting some 750 campers, according to Texas Public Radio. It’s not clear if that death toll includes the 10 campers and one counselor who officials said were missing as of Sunday.

Abbott said Sunday that while a total of 41 people are reported missing, that number is likely much higher.
“Especially in the Kerrville area, there were so many people who were just camping out … adults camping out near the river, people in RVs and things like that,” he said. “There are people who are missing who are not on the known confirmed missing [list] because we don’t yet know who they are.”
Officials urged residents to alert local officials if any of their loved ones may be missing in the Kerrville area — and to avoid potentially dangerous road conditions and so as not to interfere with rescue operations.

Debris is seen in the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas, on Sunday.
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Jorge Salgado/Anadolu via Getty Images
2. Search and rescue efforts continue
Officials say more than 850 people have been rescued so far. The Texas Military Department said on Sunday that it has rescued 520 individuals, through 361 Black Hawk air evacuations and 159 ground rescues.
More than 400 first responders from over 20 agencies have been assisting with the search and rescue efforts in Kerr County. Officials there said on Sunday that there has been a “full response from local, state and national first responders,” with air, water, K9 and other assets involved.

W. Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, said on Sunday that those efforts continue even as the state begins recovery operations, like clearing debris and reopening roads.
“That does not mean we are no longer doing search for live victims, because we still are,” he said, adding, “we’re doing everything we can to find their missing loved ones.”
3. Federal forecasters and Texas officials are pointing fingers
Questions are piling up about whether a region nicknamed “Flash Flood Alley” should have done more to prepare for Friday’s deluge, such as evacuating local summer camps.
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice declined to answer those questions at a press conference on Sunday, saying the “rain hit at the most inopportune time and right in the most inopportune areas.”
Some Texas officials have suggested that the National Weather Service (NWS) didn’t adequately warn them of the extent of the danger, which the federal agency denies.

According to NPR’s timeline, the Texas Division of Emergency Management activated emergency response resources as early as Wednesday. On Thursday, it posted on social media and informed local officials about the risk of potential flooding.
Separately, the NWS’ Austin/San Antonio office issued a flood watch for multiple counties, which it upgraded to a flood warning just after midnight on Friday and expanded in the early morning hours.
By 4:06 a.m, with river levels rising quickly, it warned of an ongoing “very dangerous flash flooding event.” The official social media pages of the City of Kerrville’s Police Department and Kerr County sheriff didn’t post about the emergency until after 6 a.m.
Meteorologists told NPR that it is extremely tricky to predict what a complex weather system will do and then convince people to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Some critics have questioned whether those efforts were further hampered by the Trump administration’s cuts to the federal workforce, which cost the NWS nearly 600 workers earlier this year (some were rehired after backlash).
Trump denied that on Sunday. “I would just say this is a 100-year catastrophe, and it’s just so horrible to watch,” Trump said.

Hunt Baptist Church in Texas is offering free water, food, and clothes to anyone in need.
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Jim Vondruska/Getty Images
4. Trump says he will visit later this week
Rice, the Kerrville city manager, said on Sunday that “local and regional partners are committed to a full review of the events and systems in place.”
But with all eyes on rescue and recovery operations, federal and state officials say questions about what went wrong — and future preparedness plans — should be revisited later.
“Let’s focus on finding those who can be found, then we can always assess what we need to do later, going forward,” U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said on Saturday.

Trump told reporters on Sunday that he plans to visit Texas this week, “probably Friday.”
“I would have done it today, but we’d just be in their way,” he said.
Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, told Morning Edition on Monday it’s been heartening to see the level of support Kerr County is getting from people around the world, including donations and volunteer sign-ups.
“But it’s gonna take the community a long time to recover there,” he said.
Texas Public Radio has compiled this guide to how to find and get help in the area.
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Death toll from Texas floods rises to 24 as search underway for more than 20 girls unaccounted for | CNN

• Rising death toll: At least 24 people are dead after torrential rain triggered flash flooding in parts of central Texas early Friday, according to officials.
• Campers unaccounted for: More than 20 girls are unaccounted for at Camp Mystic, in Kerr County, which is located along a river that rose more than 20 feet in less than two hours. It “does not mean they are lost,” Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick cautioned.
• All-night rescue effort: Searches to find those unaccounted for “will continue in the darkness of night,” Gov. Greg Abbott said. Around 237 people have been rescued or evacuated so far, many by helicopter, authorities said.
• One-in-100-years intensity: Parts of central Texas saw a month’s worth of rain in just a few hours overnight into Friday, prompting multiple flash flood emergencies. Hunt, a town near Kerrville, received about 6.5 inches in just three hours early Friday, which is considered a one-in-100-years rainfall event for the area. Heavy rain is expected to continue Saturday.
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