Some people have questioned whether or not a strong tornado could actually lift an aircraft like a 747 as depicted in the movie. Tornadoes have been known to pick up railroad engines before. An SD40-2 locomotive which is an average sized locomotive weighs 368,000 lbs. An empty 747-400 weighs 393,000 lbs, so there is not that great of a weight difference. Also, the wings would make the 747 more aerodynamic than the dead weight of a locomotive. So theoretically it would be possible for a 747 to be picked up by a strong tornado.
Some of the movie was based upon the tornado that hit Joplin on May 22, 2011. Scenes at the end were from Joplin.
Some of the news footage & radar images shown on the screens behind Allison in the storm chaser van, was actual news reports/footage from the ef5 tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma on May 20, 2013.
In a clear homage to Twister (1996) , a statue of a cow is blown off a building and across the screen.
The producers had to pay a large legal fee to Sean Casey in order to incorporate the observation turret onto the Titus. Sean Casey created the observation turret idea for TIV 1 and TIV 2 and thus holds all rights to it.