- Date
- January 20, 1990, 00:50 local (04:50 UTC)
- Place
- San Juan, PR
- Injuries
- 2 serious, 45 minor, 100 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N124AAMcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report November 9, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900120013849A
- Case key
- 32619
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
Inadvertent flight of the airplane into an area of turbulence associated with a developing rain storm.
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 airplane was in a normal descent from FL370 in preparation for arrival at the destination. As the descent continued through FL 230 the flight experienced 2 turbulence events and 2 passengers received serious injuries and 37 passengers and 8 flight attendants received minor injuries. The flight was operating on a moonless night and the weather avoidance radar was on but nothing was observed on the radar.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N124AA
- Reported as
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10
- Category
- Airplane
- Engine
- GE CF-6, turbo fan
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Registered owner
- American Airlines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Departed
- EWR · Newark, NJ
- Destination
- SJU · San Juan, PR
- Flight plan
- IFR
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 55
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 16,550 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 120° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SJU, 30 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.