Incredible footage shows inside the cockpit as storm chasers fly near the eye of Hurricane Melissa.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released the footage on Wednesday showing skilled pilots, engineers and scientists aboard the WP-3D Orion 'Kermit,' as it approached the hurricane to collect critical data that helps improve forecasts and research.
The viral clip shows the plane hurled around like a toy as the hurricane reached an astonishing wind gust of 388km/h, at an altitude of 709 feet. According to reports, this is one of the highest wind gusts ever measured in a hurricane.
Footage shows the NOAA crew clinging on as the aircraft is buffeted violently with a dense white cloud all that can be seen through the windows.
A Kermit the Frog mascot can also be seen swinging wildly from the ceiling.
Hurricane Melissa was approaching Bermuda Thursday after tearing a path of destruction across the Caribbean that left at least 24 people dead in Haiti, and parts of Jamaica and Cuba in ruins.
The storm, one of the most powerful ever recorded, was made four times more likely because of human-caused climate change, according to a study by Imperial College London.
It was forecast to pack maximum sustained winds near 165km/h as it passes over Bermuda with the government urging residents to take precautionary measures against the still-powerful storm.
Melissa smashed into both Jamaica and Cuba with enormous force, and residents were assessing their losses and the long road to recovery.
Communications and transportation access remains largely down in both nations, and comprehensive assessment of the damage could take days.
In the east of the communist island of Cuba, which is battling its worst economic crisis in decades, people struggled through inundated streets lined with flooded and collapsed homes.
The storm smashed windows, downed power cables and mobile communications, and tore off roofs and tree branches.
Melissa "killed us, because it left us destroyed," said Felicia Correa, who lives in the La Trampa community near El Cobre.
"We were already going through tremendous hardship. Now, of course, we are much worse off," she told AFP.
Some people cleared debris or tried to repair damaged roofs, as others ventured out in search of food as shops began reopening.
Cuban authorities said about 735,000 people had been evacuated - mainly in the provinces of Santiago de Cuba, Holguin and Guantanamo.
Meanwhile, the US said it was in contact with the governments of Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said rescue and response teams were en route.