FAA-ADS-36: Electrical Behavior of an Airplane in a Thunderstorm
The FAA-ADS-36 document, written in 1965, was important in establishing that we could not prevent airplanes from taking lightning strikes. The authors explored whether it was possible to reduce the probability that lightning would strike an aircraft. However, Vonnegut et. al. concluded that this was not reasonable, and instead proposed that building planes to withstand inevitable lightning strikes appeared to be the best solution.
"It does not appear to be feasible to produce a significant reduction in the probability of an airplane receiving a lightning discharge by any technique for controlling the charge on the airplane. The most promising solution to the hazards posed by lightning is to design airplanes so that they are capable of receiving discharges without damage."
Read more by downloading the FAA-ADS-36 document here.
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