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ERA11CA511

2011-09-29 · Miami, Florida, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport MIA

Current FAA registration · N804NN

Make / Model
BOEING 737-823
Engine
CFM INTL CFM56-7B24/3
Seats / Engines
162 seats · 2 engines
Last airworthiness date
20090825
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AAF1F2

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The in-flight encounter with clear air turbulence, which resulted in an injury to a cabin attendant.

Factual narrative

According to crew statements, the airplane was descending through approximately 16,000 feet in clear air when it encountered two jolts that did not damage the airplane, but resulted in a flight attendant being lifted off the deck and hitting the ceiling, then being thrown to the floor and breaking her ankle. The flight attendant was in the galley preparing for landing, and the seat belt sign was illuminated. The captain had previously deviated for weather, and the airplane was operating between cloud buildups at the time. The captain also noted that the air was relatively smooth, and that radar returns indicated that the airplane was greater than 20 miles from any significant weather. According to crew statements, the airplane was descending through about 16,000 feet mean sea level in clear air when it encountered two jolts of turbulence that did not damage the airplane but resulted in a flight attendant being lifted off the deck and hitting the ceiling, then being thrown to the floor and breaking her ankle. The flight attendant was in the galley preparing for landing, and the seat belt sign was illuminated. The captain had previously deviated for weather, and the airplane was operating between cloud buildups at the time. The captain also noted that the air was relatively smooth, and that radar returns indicated that the airplane was more than 20 miles from any significant weather. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Turbulence-Clear air turbulence-Effect on personnel - C
  • — Personnel issues-Physical-Impairment/incapacitation-Illness/injury-Cabin crew

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2011_ERA11CA511.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

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Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (turbulence). All research papers