It was arguably one of the most exciting events in Bermuda last year the arrival of the Air Force Reserve Command’s Weather Reconnaisance WC-13J Hurricane Hunter aircraft to St David’s.Hundreds of schoolchildren, the US Consulate General, and even a number of Government ministers and members of the public flocked to the airport to tour this unique aircraft and meet its crew, including The Royal Gazette’s Tricia Walters.The visit to Bermuda was part of the Hurricane Hunter’s Caribbean tour, with additional stopovers including Mexico. All in the run-up to the 2010 Hurricane Season.Members of the public also had the opportunity to meet US National Hurricane Center deputy director Ed Rappaport and senior hurricane specialist Dr Lixion Avila, along with personnel from the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron of the 403rd Wing.“After a relatively quiet 2009 season, we don’t want people to get complacent,” Dr Rappaport told The Royal Gazette at the time. “We want coastal residents to be ready for the next hurricane season, and that’s why we’re on this awareness tour before the season begins on June 1. We want to save lives through awareness and preparedness.”Since 1944, military aircrews have been flying directly into the core of tropical cyclones to gather critical weather data. Today, the data is sent from the aircraft via satellite directly to the National Hurricane Center in the US for analysis and use by hurricane forecasters like Dr Avila.There were 38 Atlantic missions flown by the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron last year, another five in the eastern North Pacific and eight in the central North Pacific.The squadron is the only remaining military unit in the world which routinely flies into tropical cyclones to aid in the United States Hurricane Warning Program.The US National Hurricane Centre is based in Miami and Dr Rappaport and Dr Avila receive crucial information from the crew on board the Hurricane Hunter during their flights into storm.Thanks to GPS Sonde a lightweight instrument package that is launched from the WC-130J aircraft the hurricane centre receives information about the hurricane including current pressure, temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, and GPS position information.“This allows them to monitor the storms and update the public via their website, and various weather channels throughout the day,” Dr Rappaport explains.He adds that Bermuda is as much at risk from hurricanes as South Florida. “The frequency here is almost the same as South Florida, with every four years on average we’re susceptible to hurricanes. That doesn’t mean you’ll get the worst of it, but it does mean you’ll be impacted in some way.”He adds that just like South Florida, every ten years or so, a major hurricane will threaten Bermuda. A major hurricane is either a Category 3, 4, or 5.“We’ll work closely with the weather service here and the Government to release forecasts every few hours when this happens,” he adds.Dr Rappaport adds that given the number of occasions that Bermuda has suffered from a hurricane, he finds it “remarkable” how well the country does during and after the storm.“You very rarely hear about significant losses here, yet you are struck quite frequently,” he says, adding that the rest of the world can learn from Bermuda.Senior hurricane specialist, Dr Avila adds that the work done by the Hurricane Hunters is crucial to meteorologists on the ground: “In order to make a good forecast you need to know where the hurricane is and this is the most accurate information we can get today.”Dr Avila has been with NOAA since 1981. “Today I am the oldest guy there,” he laughs. “Having started there as a student and worked my way to specialist.”He says a highlight of his job is working with meteorologists from other countries, like Bermuda, to come up with accurate forecasts and of course, “saving people’s lives”.As for the stress of making sure they’re always right, Dr Avila says: “When a doctor loses a patient only the family knows, but when meteorologists are wrong everyone knows and there’s more people to judge you, but we’re trained for that and we work hard to do what we do well.”The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administation and the local weather office have a good working relationship, and local meteorologists regularly visit the hurricane centre in Miami.