The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Accidents · NTSB DCA17CA194 · Final report

Mcdonnell Douglas MD 90-30 accident near El Paso, Texas, September 4, 2017

On September 4, 2017 at about 8:31 pm local time, a 1995 Mcdonnell Douglas MD 90-30, registered N938DN, was involved in an accident during approach near El Paso, Texas (El Paso Intl airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured; 142 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

an inadvertent encounter with turbulence.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
September 4, 2017 · about 8:31 pm local time
Place
El Paso, Texas · El Paso Intl · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
1 person was seriously injured; 142 others were unhurt.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Mcdonnell Douglas MD 90-30 30, built 1995
Registration
N938DN · no longer on the register · serial 53353
Damage
Not recorded
Flight
Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

On September 4, 2017 at about1531 central daylight time, Delta Air Lines flight 2121, a Boeing MD-90, N938DN, encountered turbulence during final approach into El Paso International Airport (ELP), El Paso, Texas. Of the 143 passengers and crew onboard, one flight attendant sustained serious injuries. The flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 121 as a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL), Atlanta, Georgia, to ELP.   According to the operator, while on approach the flight crew completed the cabin notification and turned the seatbelt sign on.  While one of the flight attendants was performing final safety checks and walking to her jumpseat, the airplane encountered turbulence, resulting in the flight attendant hitting her head on the overhead bin.  The flight attendant continued to her seat for the remainder of the approach and landing.  The flight crew was notified of the event during taxi and they requested paramedics meet the flight at the gate.  The flight attendant was transported to the hospital where she was diagnosed with head injuries and admitted for observation.

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

  1. Turbulence encounter during approach defining event

The NTSB's findings

  • cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Turbulence › (general) › Effect on personnel

The aircraft

  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Operator: Delta Air Lines

The flight

  • Departed from: ATL Atlanta GA
  • Destination: ELP El Paso TX

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Cabi14
Flight crew2
Passengers136

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

4 documents, released by the NTSB on August 21, 2020. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.

The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.

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.