ATSC 113 Flying A Key Exam Guide Questions and Integral
solution version 2025/2026
Rear inflow jet (RIJ) - correct answer Fast winds from behind
Squall line - correct answer wall of thunderstorms standing shoulder to
shoulder, often along cold front (leading edge of relatively cold air mass)
Classic (CL) supercell - correct answer only small % of supercells spawn
tornadoes
BUT
Supercell tornadoes often STRONGEST
- complex interplay of winds & rain => make flight near all supercells
extremely dangerous
Low-precipitation (LP) supercell - correct answer don't have much rain,
can produce large hail & downburst winds
High-precipitation (HP) supercell - correct answer - rain area much more
extensive & wrapped almost completely around centre of rotation of
mesocyclone
- rain curtains can hide dangerous tornado
Meso-low - correct answer Low-pressure region of storm
Mesocyclone - correct answer Cyclonically rotating vortex, ~2-10 km in
diameter, in convective storm
, Tornadoes - correct answer a mobile, destructive vortex of violently
rotating winds having the appearance of a funnel-shaped cloud and
advancing beneath a large storm system.
Convective clouds - correct answer Thunderstorms, driven by buoyancy of
warm, rising air inside cloud
Convective turbulence - correct answer Type of turbulence associated w/
thunderstorms
Downbursts - correct answer rapidly descending downdrafts of air found
below clouds w/ precipitation or virga
Gust fronts - correct answer Leading edge of outrushing radial straight-
line winds which form as cold downburst air hits ground
Hail - correct answer Event or process of hailstones falling out of sky
Clear Air Turbulence (CAT) - correct answer turbulence in clear air outside
of, but ADJACENT to, thunderstorm cloud
Icing - correct answer Formation of ice on parts of aircraft that droplet-
laden air hits straight in (ex. Parts that stick out into air, leading edges of
wings, propellors, etc.)
Lightning - correct answer long (0.5 - 15 km), thin (~1 cm) spark created in
thunderstorm
solution version 2025/2026
Rear inflow jet (RIJ) - correct answer Fast winds from behind
Squall line - correct answer wall of thunderstorms standing shoulder to
shoulder, often along cold front (leading edge of relatively cold air mass)
Classic (CL) supercell - correct answer only small % of supercells spawn
tornadoes
BUT
Supercell tornadoes often STRONGEST
- complex interplay of winds & rain => make flight near all supercells
extremely dangerous
Low-precipitation (LP) supercell - correct answer don't have much rain,
can produce large hail & downburst winds
High-precipitation (HP) supercell - correct answer - rain area much more
extensive & wrapped almost completely around centre of rotation of
mesocyclone
- rain curtains can hide dangerous tornado
Meso-low - correct answer Low-pressure region of storm
Mesocyclone - correct answer Cyclonically rotating vortex, ~2-10 km in
diameter, in convective storm
, Tornadoes - correct answer a mobile, destructive vortex of violently
rotating winds having the appearance of a funnel-shaped cloud and
advancing beneath a large storm system.
Convective clouds - correct answer Thunderstorms, driven by buoyancy of
warm, rising air inside cloud
Convective turbulence - correct answer Type of turbulence associated w/
thunderstorms
Downbursts - correct answer rapidly descending downdrafts of air found
below clouds w/ precipitation or virga
Gust fronts - correct answer Leading edge of outrushing radial straight-
line winds which form as cold downburst air hits ground
Hail - correct answer Event or process of hailstones falling out of sky
Clear Air Turbulence (CAT) - correct answer turbulence in clear air outside
of, but ADJACENT to, thunderstorm cloud
Icing - correct answer Formation of ice on parts of aircraft that droplet-
laden air hits straight in (ex. Parts that stick out into air, leading edges of
wings, propellors, etc.)
Lightning - correct answer long (0.5 - 15 km), thin (~1 cm) spark created in
thunderstorm
