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20040417007889I

Incident
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FAA incident report · Dhav DHC-8-103 · Lanai City, HI · April 17, 2004

FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal

© OpenStreetMap
Date
April 17, 2004 · 18:20 local
Place
Lanai City, HI
Airport
Lanai Airport
Phase of flight
Climb
Operating rules
Air carrier (Part 121)
Operator
KPVA
Aircraft
N807WP
Reported as
Dhav DHC8103
People aboard
24
Fatal injuries
0
N807WPRegistration cancelled Feb 8, 2007 · Dehavilland DHC-8-103S/N 023 · Built 1985Airframe modelDehavilland DHC-8-103Engine modelPratt & Whitney Canada PW121Turbo-prop

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

(-23) privacy data omitted a passenger occupying seat 7C, was injured when severe turbulence was encountered on climb-out from lny. ^priv^ said her seat belt was fastened tightly, but that it did not restrain her during the turbulence event. During the turbulence event, she was lifted out of her seat and her head impacted the overhead compartment. ^priv^ was traveling with her ten month-old child who was on her lap at the time of the event. The child was uninjured. Captain declared a medical emergency and requested priority clearance to hnl. Emergency medical personnel and an ambulance met the flight and ^priv^ was removed on a backboard. Subsequently, maintenance personnel inspected the seats and seat belts at row 7, however no discrepancies were noted. A definitive explanation as to why ^privac^ seat belt opened could not be determined; however, a plausible cause was considered: during the event, the abrupt change in altitude-typical in severe turbulence-resulted in dynamic forces that may have shuffled the child across ^privac^ lap. In this process, the child may have inadvertently brushed against the seat belt release flap and caused the seat belt to open. The possibility also exists that ^privac^ seat belt may have been inadvertently opened in the same manner prior to the event, as the child was noted as being especially active.

As the FAA filed it

(-23) ^PRIVACY DAT^ A PASSENGER OCCUPYING SEAT 7C, WAS INJURED WHEN SEVERE TURBULENCE WAS ENCOUNTERED ON CLIMB-OUT FROM LNY. ^PRIV^ SAID HER SEAT BELT WAS FASTENED TIGHTLY, BUT THAT IT DID NOT RESTRAIN HER DURING THE TURBULENCE EVENT. DURING THE TURBULENCE EVENT, SHE WAS LIFTED OUT OF HER SEAT AND HER HEAD IMPACTED THE OVERHEAD COMPARTMENT. ^PRIV^ WAS TRAVELING WITH HER TEN MONTH-OLD CHILD WHO WAS ON HER LAP AT THE TIME OF THE EVENT. THE CHILD WAS UNINJURED. CAPTAIN DECLARED A MEDICAL EMERGENCY AND REQUESTED PRIORITY CLEARANCE TO HNL. EMERGENCY MEDICAL PERSONNEL AND AN AMBULANCE MET THE FLIGHT AND ^PRIV^ WAS REMOVED ON A BACKBOARD. SUBSEQUENTLY, MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL INSPECTED THE SEATS AND SEAT BELTS AT ROW 7, HOWEVER NO DISCREPANCIES WERE NOTED. A DEFINITIVE EXPLANATION AS TO WHY ^PRIVAC^ SEAT BELT OPENED COULD NOT BE DETERMINED; HOWEVER, A PLAUSIBLE CAUSE WAS CONSIDERED: DURING THE EVENT, THE ABRUPT CHANGE IN ALTITUDE-TYPICAL IN SEVERE TURBULENCE-RESULTED IN DYNAMIC FORCES THAT MAY HAVE SHUFFLED THE CHILD ACROSS ^PRIVAC^ LAP. IN THIS PROCESS, THE CHILD MAY HAVE INADVERTENTLY BRUSHED AGAINST THE SEAT BELT RELEASE FLAP AND CAUSED THE SEAT BELT TO OPEN. THE POSSIBILITY ALSO EXISTS THAT ^PRIVAC^ SEAT BELT MAY HAVE BEEN INADVERTENTLY OPENED IN THE SAME MANNER PRIOR TO THE EVENT, AS THE CHILD WAS NOTED AS BEING ESPECIALLY ACTIVE.