Boeing 767-224 incident near Bavaro, Do, August 3, 2009
On August 3, 2009 at about 7:55 am local time, a Boeing 767-224, registered N76156, was involved in an incident during enroute near Bavaro. It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 33 people had minor injuries; 146 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight crew's inadvertent flight through the top of a convective updraft that resulted in an encounter with convective induced turbulence. Contributing to the severity of the incident was the unrestrained status of several passengers, contrary to the lighted seat belt sign.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 3, 2009 · about 7:55 am local time
- Place
- Bavaro, Dominican Republic · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- 33 people had minor injuries; 146 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 767-224 · all 767-224s on the register
- Registration
- N76156 · no longer on the register · serial 30435
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The Captain stated that the ride had been smooth at their cruise altitude of 36,000 feet and he was able to see lights on the ground below with good forward visibility as well. The autopilot was engaged, both weather radar devices were on and functioning normally, and the seat belt sign was illuminated. Seconds after he initiated a climb to 38,000 feet, the aircraft encountered an initial severe bump followed by a few seconds of moderate turbulence and a final severe bump within the span of about ten seconds. The aircraft continued to climb and level off at 38,000 feet. The Captain was notified that there were some passenger and flight attendant injuries and made the decision to declare a medical emergency diversion to Miami International Airport in Florida where the aircraft landed one hour and forty minutes later. The FDR data indicated that, upon a climb from 36,000 feet to 38,000 feet, the vertical acceleration changed from 1.0 g’s to 2.0 g’s in one second, continued to oscillate from 2.0 g’s to 0.9’s for seven seconds before returning to 1.0 g’s and then immediately accelerating to -1.0 g’s in 0.5 seconds. No pilot reports near the location and close to the time of the turbulence encounter were found on record, and the weather document issued for the incident flight showed no predicted turbulence activity at the time of the turbulence event in the turbulence region. In addition, a meteorological study using satellite weather imagery at the time of the incident indicated the presence of isolated, rapidly developing cumulus congestus to cumulonimbus clouds under the airplane’s flight path.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Turbulence encounter during enroute defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Turbulence › Convective turbulence › Effect on personnel
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot, military, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 24,900 hours in all; 7,200 in this make and model; 258 in the last 90 days; 93 in the last 30 days; 19,400 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: June 6, 2009
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,610 hours in all; 620 in this make and model; 226 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 1,500 as pilot in command; 1,100 on instruments
- Last flight review: October 18, 2008
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Other crew
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
Crew member
No details recorded.
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 38,844 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 31, 2009
- Maximum gross weight: 395,000 lb
- Seats: 186
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: Ge CF6-80 SERIES (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Ge CF6-80 SERIES (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Continental Airlines INC
The flight
- Departed from: GIG Rio De Janeiro at 9:45 pm
- Destination: IAH Houston TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 5 | 3 | ||
| Flight crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 28 | 140 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.