- Date
- April 28, 1996, 15:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Chicago, IL
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 135 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N7443UBoeing 727-222A
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 11, 1996
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19960428014539A
- Case key
- 10118
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.
On this page
Probable cause
a passenger disturbance that required the flight attendant to leave her seat. A factor in this accident was the encounter with turbulence as the flight attendant was performing her assigned duties.
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 airline flight was at Flight Level 240 when the ARTCC advised the captain of possible moderate chop starting at Flight Level 220. The captain advised the flight attendants of this information. A few minutes later the flight was instructed to descend to Flight Level 190. The captain turned on the seat belt sign and requested that the passengers take their seats. During the descent the flight encountered turbulence as it entered a cloud layer at Flight Level 220. As the flight entered the cloud layer a flight attendant was dealing with a passenger who had gotten out of their seat. The flight attendant fell against the passenger seat arm and onto the floor during the turbulence encounter.
Factual narrative
On April 28, 1996, at 1500 central daylight time, a Boeing 727- 222A, N7443U, operated by United Airlines, Incorporated, of Chicago, Illinois, as Flight Number 392, and piloted by an airline transport and commercially certificated crew, encountered moderate turbulence during a descent into Chicago, Illinois. The 14 CFR Part 121 flight was operating on a IFR flight plan. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The 3 person flight crew, 3 flight attendants, and 129 passengers were not injured. A fourth flight attendant received minor injuries. The flight departed San Jose, California, at 1004 pacific daylight time.
The flight was at Flight Level 240 when the Federal Aviation Administration's Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center controller (controller) advised the flight's captain of possible moderate chop starting at Flight Level 220. The captain said he advised the flight attendants that they had a couple of minutes to finish closing the galleys and take a seat. About 2 to 3 minutes later, the controller instructed Flight 392 to descend to Flight Level 190. The captain turned the seatblt sign on and requested the pasengers take their seats.
During the descent the flight encountered turbulence as it entered a cloud layer at Flight Level 220. A flight attendant was dealing with a passenger who had gotten out of their seat. The flight attendant fell against the passenger's seat arm and then onto the floor during the turbulence encounter. The airline reported that the flight attendant suffered a severly sprained back. The injured flight attendant was assigned seat number 1, left, outboard.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7443U
- Reported as
- Boeing 727-222A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 21897
- Airframe hours
- 45,716
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-15, 15,500 lbs thrust, turbo jet
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Registered owner
- United Airlines, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · June 8, 1995 · 2,557 hours before
- Departed
- SJC · San Jose, CA
- Destination
- ORD
- 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
- 47
- Certificates
- Flight engineer, Airline transport, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 12,071 total · 4,957 in this make and model · 8,863 as pilot in command · 166 in the last 90 days · 71 in the last 30 days · 11 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 70° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 5,500 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ORD
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.