[wxwatcher]

cate,

When it comes to turbulence, there are more than one cause. Besides thermal or convective turbulence, there is "mechanical" which is caused by winds encountering uneven terrain like the Rockies. There are also various forms and severities of turbulence associated with storm systems and frontal passage, inversion layers, and the jet stream. If you haven't gone to a ground school yet, check the aviation books section on this web page. It will take you to a selection of books related to aviation. Look for the one on Aviation Weather by Terry Lankford. He's a retired FAA Flight Service Specialist and a current pilot. Does a good job expalining the weather related side of flying.

As for the B737 accident at Colorado Springs, that wa soriginally thought to be caused by a rotor cloud, but after the USAir incident outside Pittsburg, and another near Atlantic City, the NTSB people found a problem with the rudder actuator servo. Under the right conditions, that little gizmo, which controls rudder travel in the B737, could lock up or even operate in reverse to the pilot's inputs causing an uncontrolled roll and crash. The Discovery Channel had a special, "Why Airplanes Crash," which aired about two months ago and they actually did a segment on those accidents.

Jerry

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Comments and opinions are my own and do not reflect those of my employer.