Boeing 767 accident near Sunns Intersection, Osaka, Jp, December 4, 2018
On December 4, 2018 at about 6:00 pm local time, a 1997 Boeing 767, registered N193DN, was involved in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Sunns Intersection, Osaka. It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries; 92 others were unhurt. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The airplane’s encounter with severe turbulence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 4, 2018 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Sunns Intersection, Osaka, Jp · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries; 92 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Boeing 767 332, built 1997 · all 767s on the register
- Registration
- N193DN · registry record · serial 28450
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On December 4, 2018, about 2130 Japan standard time, Delta Air Lines flight 278, N193DN, a Boeing 767-300ER, encountered severe turbulence during cruise. Of the 95 passengers and crew onboard, one flight attendant received serious injuries and two flight attendants received minor injuries. The airplane was not damaged. The regularly scheduled international passenger flight was operating under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 from Kansai International Airport (RJBB), Osaka, Japan, to Honolulu International Airport (PHNL), Honolulu, Hawaii. The first officer was the pilot flying, and the captain was pilot monitoring. According to the captain, the flight had experienced continuous light turbulence during the climb. Upon reaching FL350, in the moonless night, and in smooth air, the captain said that he deactivated the seat belt sign, and released the flight attendants to begin cabin service, while also giving a precautionary notice on the interphone to remain seated with the seatbelts fastened as much as possible. He added that the weather radar was set with the Gain on AUTO, and it was depicting green radar returns on its display. He said that they were approaching SUNNS intersection and noted that the radar showed a light green return. He said he discussed it with the first officer, and they both agreed to request a turn and a climb to avoid the depicted weather. After clearance was given to make the turn, the captain said that he turned the seatbelt sign ON, and made an announcement for everyone, including the flight attendants, to be seated. As the flight made the course deviation to avoid the weather, the captain indicated that the radar gave more definition in its depiction, and the lightning illumination emanating from the cloud showed that the cloud extended about 1,000 feet above their flight level, so they continued the turn to remain outside the green weather return depiction. He said that the radar depiction suddenly showed a faint dot of red at its center, and at that time the ride went immediately from smooth to severe turbulence, without any intervening intermediate intensities being noted. He said the airplane climbed about a few hundred feet and a momentary engine indicating and crew alerting system (EICAS) overspeed message occurred. He further stated that the turbulence came in two waves, and it lasted less than 30 seconds. The airplane then recovered back to FL350, and light chop continued. During the turbulence encounter, the flight attendants were in the middle of meal service. As a result, two flight attendants sustained minor injuries and one flight attendant fractured an ankle.
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 (cruise) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Turbulence › Convective turbulence › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 19,433 hours in all; 4,621 in this make and model; 155 in the last 30 days; 15,172 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: February 15, 2018
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,814 hours in all; 9,654 in this make and model; 167 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: November 28, 2018
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 348,220 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Pratt & Whitney PW4060 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Pratt & Whitney PW4060 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Delta Air Lines
The flight
- Departed from: RJBB Osaka OF at 12:00 pm
- Destination: KHNO Honolulu HI
- 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 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |
| Flight crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 85 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DCA19CA034.