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CHAPTER
5
Air Masses and Fronts

Air Masses
An air mass is a body of air extending over a large area of at least
1,000 miles across. Properties of temperature and moisture are fairly
constant throughout the air mass. Horizontal changes of these prop-
erties are usually very gradual. The terrain surface beneath the air
mass is the primary factor in determining air mass characteristics.

Air Mass Classification

cP. Continental polar. Air stagnating over northern continental regions
forms arctic air masses. They are cold and dry, and very stable.
mP. Maritime polar. The air masses form over northern oceanic areas.
They are normally not as cold as cP air masses, especially in the
winter; have a higher moisture content; and can be either stable or
unstable.
mT. Maritime tropical. The air masses develop over warm oceanic
areas nearer to the equator. They are very humid and generally are
the most unstable of all.
cT. Continental tropical. These air masses originate from arid, conti-
nental regions that are hot, dry, and unstable. Due to the absence of
water vapor, they produce very few rain showers.

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214 WEATHER

Fronts
Fronts are transition zones between air masses that have different
densities. The density of air is primarily controlled by the temperature
and humidity of the air. Therefore, fronts in the mid-latitudes usually
form between tropical and polar air masses.
Frontal zones, which are normally many miles in width, are most
easily detected when the air masses have vastly different properties.
They are mostly determined by a change in temperature, moisture,
and wind direction and velocity. Specific weather conditions precede
and follow a front as it moves through an area. Furthermore, weather
associated with one section of a front frequently is different from the
weather in other sections of the same front.

Cold Fronts
A cold front is the leading edge of an advancing cold air mass. Colder
air overtakes the warmer air, wedging underneath it and forcing it
aloft. Surface friction slows the air in contact with the surface, creat-
ing a bulge in the frontal slope. This tends to give the front a steep
slope near its leading edge. Cold frontal slopes average about 1:80
miles. This means 80 miles behind the front’s surface position, the
frontal boundary is about 1 mile above the ground. A steep-sloped
front (1:40) results in a narrow band of active weather, while a shal-
lower-sloped front (1:100) results in a wide band of weather.

SQUALL-LINE FORMATION

Squall lines form rapidly when cold air downdrafts flowing ahead of
the cold air lift the warm, unstable air. The uplifted air develops its
own updrafts and downdrafts and starts the thunderstorm develop-
ment cycle. As the thunderstorm continues development, a squall line
will form, often moving at speeds of up to 50 knots. Under certain
atmospheric conditions, a squall line composed of thunderstorms may
develop 50 to 200 nm ahead of and parallel to a fast-moving cold front.
Thunderstorms associated with a squall line are particularly vio-
lent, with the cloud tops much higher in altitude than during most
thunderstorms. Severe weather conditions including large hail, dam-
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Air Masses and Fronts 215

aging winds, and tornadoes are typical signs of a cold front–squall line
thunderstorm.
Squall lines eventually lose momentum and energy, dissipating after
a life cycle of several hours. Sometimes a new squall line re-forms and
moves through approximately the same location as the dissipating one,
requiring a pilot’s vigilance. Squall lines are usually most intense dur-
ing the late afternoon and early evening hours just after maximum day-
time heating. They are generally associated with cold fronts but may
also appear in low-pressure troughs or lines where sea breezes con-
verge against mountain barriers.

FLYING HAZARDS

Squall lines produce strong turbulence, potentially in the severe or

extreme categories. Windshear, thunderstorms, lightning, heavy rain,
hail, icing, and tornadoes all may be present in and around a squall
line. Such dangerous weather conditions can cause sudden fluctua-
tions in altimeter settings, some as abrupt as 0.06 to 0.12 inches of Hg
in minutes.

Warm Fronts
The edge of an advancing warm air mass is called a warm front; warmer
air is overtaking and replacing colder air. Since the cold air is more dense
than the warm air, it tends to be slow at dissipating. This produces a
gradual, warm frontal slope that usually averages 1:200 miles.
If the advancing warm air is moist and stable, stratiform clouds will
develop. Often the progression of cirrus, cirrostratus, altostratus, and
nimbostratus clouds indicate such a front. Precipitation usually
increases slowly with the approach of this type of warm front, and
normally continues until it passes.
If the advancing warm air is moist and unstable, altocumulus and
cumulonimbus clouds, including thunderstorms, will be embedded in
the cloud masses that normally accompany the warm front. The pres-
ence of these thunderstorms is often unknown to pilots until they fly
into one. Precipitation in advance of the front is usually in the form of
showers.
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216 WEATHER

FLYING HAZARDS

One of the most serious hazards is the presence of low-level wind-

shear that can linger for longer than six hours prior to the passage of
a warm front. The widespread precipitation area ahead of a warm
front often causes low stratus and fog. When this occurs, the precipi-
tation raises the humidity of the cold air to saturation. This can pro-
duce low ceilings and poor visibility over thousands of square miles.
The frontal zone itself might have extremely low ceilings and near
zero visibilities over a wide area.
If the cold air has subfreezing temperatures, the precipitation might
take the form of freezing rain or ice pellets. In summer months, thun-
derstorm activity is quite likely.

Stationary Fronts
Sometimes the opposing forces exerted by adjacent air masses of dif-
ferent densities are such that the frontal surface between them shows
little or no movement. Surface winds tend to blow parallel to the front
rather than away from it. Since neither air mass is replacing the other,
the front is considered stationary.
Although there is no movement of the front’s surface position, an
upglide of air can occur along the frontal slope. The angle of this flow
of air in relation to the surface position of the front, and the intensity
of the upgliding wind, determines the inclination of the frontal slope.
The weather conditions associated with the stationary front are simi-
lar to those found with a warm front but are usually less severe. Since
the weather pattern is stationary, poor weather might persist and ham-
per flights in one area of the country for several days.

Frontal Waves
Frontal waves are primarily the result of the interaction of two air
masses. They usually form on slow-moving cold fronts or stationary
fronts. During the initial stage of development, the winds on both
sides of the front blow parallel to the front. Any small disturbance in
the wind pattern, such as uneven local heating or irregular terrain,
may start a wavelike bend in the front. These waves can intensify in
size, producing a dangerous cyclonic circulation.
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Air Masses and Fronts 217

One section of the front begins moving as a warm front, while the
section next to it begins moving as a cold front. This deformation area
is called a frontal wave. As the pressure at the peak of the frontal wave
falls, a low-pressure center forms. The cyclonic circulation strength-
ens, causing the winds in the cold front to move faster than those in
the warm front.
Frontal waves are not obvious on the weather chart and are, there-
fore, difficult to detect.

National Airlines DC-6

Severe frontal waves have caused in-flight breakups. One such event
occurred to a National Airlines DC-6 in February 1953. The flight, with
41 passengers and 5 crewmembers, took off from Tampa, Florida, for a
late afternoon flight to New Orleans, Louisiana. The aircraft was flying
over the Gulf of Mexico at a cruise altitude of FL 145 (14,500 feet), when
it encountered severe turbulence. The flight crew slowed the airplane
and requested a descent to 4,500 feet. That was their final communica-
tion. The wreckage was later found 16 nm from Mobile, Alabama.
The probable cause of the crash was listed as, “The loss of control
followed by the in-flight failure and separation of portions of the air-
frame structure, while the aircraft was traversing an intense frontal-
wave type storm of extremely severe turbulence. The severity and
location of which the pilot had not been fully informed.”

Occlusions
Occlusions are the result of one frontal system overtaking another frontal
system. Typically, the cyclonic circulations of a frontal wave push the
faster-moving winds of a cold front until they join with a warm front.
The two fronts merge and become an occlusion, or an occluded front.
The intensity of the frontal wave cyclone is at maximum strength.
An occluded front exhibits characteristics from both the cold front
and warm front. As the occlusion expands in length, the low-pressure
area weakens and the frontal movement slows. At this point, a new
frontal wave may begin to form on the long, westward-trailing portion
of the cold front. In the final stage, the occlusion begins to disappear
and the two fronts form a single stationary front.
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218 WEATHER

Occlusion Weather
Weather associated with occlusions is a combination of that which is
found in cold fronts and warm fronts. A line of rain showers and thun-
derstorms typically develop as the cold front merges with low ceilings
of the warm front. Precipitation and low visibilities are widespread
over a large area on either side of the surface position of the occlusion.
Strong winds will occur around an intense low at the northern end of
the occlusion.

Flying Hazards
The location of the occlusion is significant for pilots because the most
severe weather, including low ceilings and visibilities, is generally
located in an area 100 nm south to 300 nm north of the frontal inter-
section. Pilots should be aware of dramatically changing weather con-
ditions, particularly in the early stages of development.
The visual cues when flying toward an approaching occlusion can
be misleading. The cloud pattern is very similar to that of a warm
front, but the weather can be characteristic of a cold front. Therefore,
a pilot may experience fog and low ceilings, followed by a thunder-
storm. The reverse is also true. When a pilot approaches an occlusion
from behind, the cloud structure may resemble a cold front, but once
inside the occluded front, the pilot may find conditions associated
with warm fronts, such as extensive cloud decks.

References
Department of the Air Force. 1 January 1982. Weather for Aircrews.
Williams, Jack. June 1995. “Jetstreams.” Flight Training: 47–49.
Williams, Jack. 1992. The Weather Book. New York: Vintage Books.