yeah, sounds like CAT then. I've had a few rough trips but only 2 where I was remotely worried. I was just wndering where in the plane she was since in bad turbulence the back can get a rougher ride... 737 esp used to 'wag its tail' a bit
DD is a well travelled person, flown lots of times. Not sure where on the plane she was sitting, she got chatting to a lady next to here that had the death breath, lol.
The best thing I had to really push her to get the flight, she just didnt want to leave. Had me in floods!! boohoo.
Ah, bless -- I have taken that flight many times and recall what felt like terrible turbulence during a similar storm last year; I was practically in tears and can definitely empathize with your poor daughter. The main thing is to breathe deeply and remember that it's a really short flight; I distracted myself by talking to (and probably annoying) the person next to me so I could focus and not freak out.
They wouldn't. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to predict turbulence, and even then, it may be more severe than anticipated, just like any weather phenomenon. Rest assured the pilots of the flight are more than ready to cancel if they feel there is any undue risk. After all, they are on the same plane! ;)
In my experience, many passengers (especially those who do not fly often) describe turbulence as "extremely severe" when in fast it may be moderate at most. The problem with thunderstorms is, the associated weather when bad will usually (but not always) show up on a weather radar, so the course is plotted to avoid turbulence as much as possible. This only works, however, with turbulence associated with rain, since weather radar picks up on moisture particles in the air. Clear Air Turbulence is another thing entirely, and can come out of nowhere. From the description you give here, I would guess they encountered some unexpectedl CAT. This is why the flight crew always advise to keep your seatbelt on at all times.
Also, the lad in front screaming does not necessary mean there was any danger, it just means she is probably a nervous flier... Sometimes it is not possible to immediately change to a flight level out fo the bad weather, especially Doha-Dubai being a short flight. That air traffic area can get very busy so may take a few minutes to safely change altitude/flight path. Also the flight never gets to a very high altitude being so short, so is more likely to encounter turbulence.
Was she sitting towards the back of the plane by any chance?