20090531048969I

Incident · No damage

FAA incident report · Boeing 737-7BD · Nassau, BH · May 31, 2009

Date: May 31, 2009 · 11:52 local
Place: Nassau, BH
Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
Operating rules: Air carrier (Part 121)
Operator: ZZDA
Damage: No damage
Aircraft: N167AT
Reported as: Boeing 737-7BD
Reported engine: CFM International CFM56 series
People aboard: 142
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Airline transport
Pilot’s flight hours: 8,500 total768 in this make and model194 in the last 90 days

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.

Pilot in command requested a climb to flight level 410 in an attempt to climb over a cumulus build up. The investigation indicated he exceeded the stall/buffet boundary margin for the aircraft weight resulting in a buffet condition which subsequently caused an unscheduled but controlled descent into a turbulent area of the build up. The turbulence further aggrivated the situation resulting in a descent to flight level 310.the pilot declared an emergency with miami air traffic control sector ZMA-58.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT IN COMMAND REQUESTED A CLIMB TO FLIGHT LEVEL 410 IN AN ATTEMPT TO CLIMB OVER A CUMULUS BUILD UP. THE INVESTIGATION INDICATED HE EXCEEDED THE STALL/BUFFET BOUNDARY MARGIN FOR THE AIRCRAFT WEIGHT RESULTING IN A BUFFET CONDITION WHICH SUBSEQUENTLY CAUSED AN UNSCHEDULED BUT CONTROLLED DESCENT INTO A TURBULENT AREA OF THE BUILD UP. THE TURBULENCE FURTHER AGGRIVATED THE SITUATION RESULTING IN A DESCENT TO FLIGHT LEVEL 310.THE PILOT DECLARED AN EMERGENCY WITH MIAMI AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SECTOR ZMA-58.