# NTSB DCA25LA307: Embraer S A ERJ 170-200 LL, N110SY, Peaster, TX, August 29, 2025 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Class 4 · Limited · Final report - Date: August 28, 2025, 19:27 local (Aug 29, 2025, 00:27 UTC) - Place: Peaster, TX · 40 miles SW of Dallas Fort Worth International Airport - Coordinates: 32.865325, -97.871333 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.8653&lon=-97.8713&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Enroute: Turbulence encounter](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/360) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 1 serious, 3 minor, 39 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 14, 2026 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish - NTSB office: Major Investigations Division - Parties: SkyWest, Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 200899 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=DCA25LA307 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/200899/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=200899 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DCA25LA307 ## Probable cause The airplane’s encounter with convective turbulence that resulted in serious injuries to a passenger who was out of their seat when the seatbelt sign was illuminated. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Convective weather: thunderstorm](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03033010): Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Effect on personnel (probable cause); cases with it: [Embraer S A ERJ 170-200 LL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03033010/cases.md?model=326041A), [All aircraft, 100 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03033010/cases.md) - [Action: lack of action](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041030): Personnel issues › Action/decision · Passenger (probable cause); cases with it: [Embraer S A ERJ 170-200 LL, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041030/cases.md?model=326041A), [All aircraft, 792 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041030/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Enroute: Turbulence encounter](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/360) (defining event); cases with it: [Embraer S A ERJ 170-200 LL, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/360/sequence.md?model=326041A), [All aircraft, 423 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/360/sequence.md) ## Analysis SkyWest flight 5971, a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Aspen/Pitkin County Airport (ASE), Aspen, Colorado, to George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Houston, Texas, diverted to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS), Austin, Texas, after encountering severe turbulence at FL390. As a result, one passenger received serious injuries. The first officer, the pilot flying, stated they did not see significant weather near their route from ASE to IAH, but the flight crew did brief on the possibility of small thunderstorm cells developing as a threat while flying toward IAH. The flight crew stated that extra fuel was added to the airplane in preparation for possible deviations due to weather and that flight attendants (FAs) were briefed on turbulence when departing ASE. The departure from ASE was without incident. While en route to IAH, the flight crew was cleared by air traffic control (ATC) to deviate left and right of the planned flight course due to thunderstorms in the area. The flight crew stated the seatbelt sign was illuminated due to these deviations from the planned flight course. The captain stated they used the onboard weather radar to look for heavy precipitation returns, but none showed up for their flight trajectory. Furthermore, the captain stated they did not receive information from their dispatcher or recommendations from ATC prior to encountering severe turbulence. The flight crew recalled that the encounter with severe turbulence was sudden and unanticipated when the flight was clear of clouds. The first officer performed an upset recovery procedure and began an immediate descent and the captain contacted ATC and declared an emergency. The airplane leveled off at FL370 at the conclusion of the upset recovery procedure. When the severe turbulence was encountered, one flight attendant (FA) was in the aisle preparing the cabin and the other was in the forward galley. Both FAs were thrown to the floor and remained there until the turbulence subsided. There were also two passengers out of their seats at the time of the turbulence. One passenger was in the aisle and was thrown to floor but was able to return to his seat. The other passenger was discovered by the aft FA in the aft lavatory with head injuries. The FA assisted this passenger to the aft FA jumpseat. Shortly after the recovery, the flight crew received a “cabin altitude high” warning on the engine indication and crew alerting system (EICAS). The flight crew donned their oxygen masks and initiated an emergency descent to 10,000 ft. Subsequently, the flight diverted to AUS and landed without further incident. Emergency medical personnel met the airplane at the gate and transported both passengers to the hospital. One passenger was treated and released with minor injuries and the other was diagnosed with a fractures to her vertebra, tibia, and ribs. Postaccident examination of the airplane found the outflow valve that regulates cabin pressure had malfunctioned. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N110SY](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N110SY), registered now, S/N 17000405, built 2014 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: EMBRAER S A ERJ 170-200 LL - Registry model: [Embraer S A ERJ 170-200 LL](https://openairdocs.org/model/embraer-s-a-erj-170-200-ll) (registry code 326041A) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [GE CF34-8E5](https://openairdocs.org/engine/ge-cf34-8e5) (registry code 30061, turbo-fan) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 17000405 - Year built: 2014 - Airframe hours: 28706 - Engines: GE CF34-8E5 14510 lbs thrust turbo fan; GE CF34-8E5 14510 lbs thrust turbo fan - Damage: No damage - Flight: Part 121 - Operator: Skywest Airlines Inc, doing business as United Airlines - Registered owner: Skywest Airlines Inc - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Transport - Last inspection: Continuous airworthiness, August 18, 2025 - Departed: ASE, Aspen, CO - Destination: IAH, Houston, TX - Flight plan: IFR - Equipment: Auto-pilot, Data recorder, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Electronic multifunction display, Electronic primary flight display, Onboard weather, Stall warning system, ADS-B, Angle of attack indicator ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 46; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane, helicopter; medical: class 1, without waivers/limitations; last flight review February 19, 2024; seat: left; flight hours: 5,915 total, 3,071 in this make and model, 3,595 as pilot in command - Co-pilot; age 27; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, with waivers/limitations; last flight review August 20, 2025; seat: rear; flight hours: 489 total, 489 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 330° at 50 knots ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20250828017439A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20250828017439A), Aug 28, 2025: Embraer S A ERJ 170-200 LL, No damage. On August 28, 2025, at 1927 hours local (0027Z 08/29/2025), an ERJ-170-200LL, operated by [privacy data omitted] airlines, was on a regularly scheduled flight… ## Docket (6 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 14, 2026, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=200899. 100 MB in all. - Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 11 pages, 1.2 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=19665804&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=5971%20AUS%20Severe%20Turbulence%206120_Final_MM-Rel.pdf - Flight 5971 crew statements (item 2, PDF, 10 pages, 101 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=19661137&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=SKW%205971%20Flight%20Crew%20Statements%20(DCA25LA307)-Rel.pdf - Skywest dispatcher statements (item 3, PDF, 2 pages, 231 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=19662115&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=SKW%205971%20Dispatcher%20Statements%20(DCA25LA307)-Rel.pdf - Fusion weather images from skywest (item 4, PDF, 11 pages, 1.7 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=19661647&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Fusion%20Weather%20Images-Rel.pdf - Animation of weather (item 5, GIF, 10.7 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=19286621&FileExtension=gif&FileName=animation_SAT_sandwich_GLM_2326to0051utc_CODNEXLAB-GOES-East-local-NE_Texas-13-01_06Z-20250829_map-id-glm_flash_noBar-19-1n-10-100-Rel.gif - Fort worth ARTCC - ATC audio (item 6, WAV, 86.3 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=19680710&FileExtension=wav&FileName=ATC%20Audio%20DAL-HR%200011-0055Z%208-29-25-Rel.wav From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.