- Date
- April 23, 1985, 15:23 local (21:23 UTC)
- Place
- Little Rock, AR
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 minor, 3 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N856AABoeing 727-223
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850423019949I
- Case key
- 12830
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The aircraft was paralleling a line of thunderstorms and needed to get on the other side of the line to get to his destination. The center controller suggested that he reverse course to fly around the closer end of the line but the pilot decided to penetrate the line instead. The pilot stated he was between two thunderstorm cells at least 45 NM apart when the aircraft ran into severe turbulence. The aircraft lost 500 ft of altitude and two flight attendants were injured. They were instructed to sit down earlier but did not have time to strap in. A passenger on his way to the lavatory refused to sit down when instructed to do so by the flight attendants and was injured also during the turbulence encounter.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N856AA
- Reported as
- Boeing 727-223
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 20997
- Engine
- P&W JT8-D, 14,500 lbs thrust, turbo jet
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- American Airlines
- Registered owner
- Connecticut National Bank
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- IAH · Houston, TX
- Destination
- ORD · Chicago, IL
- Flight plan
- IFR
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 49
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 15,000 total · 5,000 in this make and model · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Wind
- 230° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 15,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- 20 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.