- Date
- March 9, 2017, 19:15 local (Mar 10, 2017, 01:15 UTC)
- Place
- Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), TX
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 106 uninjured
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N9615WMcdonnell Douglas DC 9 83(MD-83)
- Defining event
- Enroute: Turbulence encounter
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed · report March 9, 2018
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Major Investigations Division
- Case key
- 94878
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
an inadvertent encounter with convective turbulence.
Findings · 1
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
On March 9, 2017 at 1915 central standard time, American Airlines flight 2588, a Boeing MD-83, N9615W, from Toronto, Ontario, Canada to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), encountered turbulence at flight level 280 (FL280) during cruise flight from Toronto, Ontario, Canada to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Dallas, Texas, resulting in a serious injury to one of the flight attendants (FA). None of the other passengers and crew members were injured and the airplane received minor damage. According to the operator, while enroute to DFW at FL 280, in intermittent IMC conditions at 0.74 Mach, the flight crew was deviating left of assigned course to avoid weather and was northeast of Memphis . The seat belt sign was on and the on-board radar was not depicting any precipitation. The aircraft experienced unexpected turbulence. The #2 and the #4 FAs were seated in their jumpseats in the rear of the aircraft, however, their seatbelts were not fastened. Both the #2 and the #4 FAs struck the overhead ceiling panel and fell to the floor. No passengers reported injuries and the FAs were able to complete their duties. Emergency Medical Service personnel met the FAs at the gate and transported to the hospital. Both FAs were treated and released from the hospital that evening, however, the #2 FA was later diagnosed with fractures to her vertebrae.
Factual narrative
On March 9, 2017 at 1915 central standard time, American Airlines flight 2588, a Boeing MD-83, N9615W, from Toronto, Ontario, Canada to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), encountered turbulence at flight level 280 (FL280) during cruise flight from Toronto, Ontario, Canada to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Dallas, Texas, resulting in a serious injury to one of the flight attendants (FA). None of the other passengers and crew members were injured and the airplane received minor damage. According to the operator, while enroute to DFW at FL 280, in intermittent IMC conditions at 0.74 Mach, the flight crew was deviating left of assigned course to avoid weather and was northeast of Memphis . The seat belt sign was on and the on-board radar was not depicting any precipitation. The aircraft experienced unexpected turbulence. The #2 and the #4 FAs were seated in their jumpseats in the rear of the aircraft, however, their seatbelts were not fastened. Both the #2 and the #4 FAs struck the overhead ceiling panel and fell to the floor. No passengers reported injuries and the FAs were able to complete their duties. Emergency Medical Service personnel met the FAs at the gate and transported to the hospital. Both FAs were treated and released from the hospital that evening, however, the #2 FA was later diagnosed with fractures to her vertebrae.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9615W
- Reported as
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC 9 83(MD-83) (83)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 53562
- Built
- 1997
- Airframe hours
- 56,242
- Engines
- Pratt & Whitney JT8D-219, 21,000 lbs thrust, turbo fanPratt & Whitney JT8D-219, 21,000 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- American Airlines
- Registered owner
- Wells Fargo
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Departed
- YYZ · Toronto
- Destination
- DFW · Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Equipment
- Data recorder
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 61
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Unknown
- Last flight review
- November 12, 2016
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 5-point
- Flight hours
- 14,147 total · 1 in this make and model · 2,500 as pilot in command
- Role
- Co-pilot
- Age
- 33
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Medical
- Class 1, Unknown
- Last flight review
- October 8, 2016
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 5-point
- Flight hours
- 756 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night
- Turbulence
- Moderate
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 13, 2017, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 598 KB in all.