Boeing 757-2G7 accident near Dallas, Texas, April 3, 2000
On April 3, 2000 at about 3:06 am local time, a Boeing 757-2G7, registered N910AW, was involved in an accident near Dallas, Texas. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries; 196 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The en route cruise encounter with forecast moderate turbulence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 3, 2000 · about 3:06 am local time
- Place
- Dallas, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries; 196 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 757-2G7 · all 757-2G7s on the register
- Registration
- N910AW · registry record · serial 24523
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While cruising at FL310, the captain observed on radar that the airplane was approaching a line of thunderstorm cells, which had been forecast. The captain advised the first flight attendant to expect turbulence. He turned on the fasten seat belt sign, and he directed that cabin service be suspended and the service carts stowed. The first flight attendant notified the other flight attendants of the captain's instructions. She stated that she directed them to "stop service and take their seats immediately." The flight attendants secured the cabin, which took a few minutes. However, they had not taken their seats when the airplane encountered several jolts of moderate turbulence. The airplane's flight data recorder indicated that within a 1/2-second period the vertical acceleration changed from -0.05G to +2.37Gs. The first flight attendant (front cabin) was knocked off her feet. The three flight attendants in the aft galley were thrown upward but did not strike the ceiling before coming back down and falling to the floor. One was seriously injured. The operator's "InFlight Operations Manual" required the flight crew to use standard terminology during briefings to the flight attendants. The descriptive terms include usage of the words "light, moderate, or severe" when describing expected turbulence. Neither the captain nor any of the flight attendants reported having used/heard these terms regarding the anticipated turbulence intensity.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 26,280 hours in all; 5,183 in this make and model; 171 in the last 90 days; 61 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 42,917 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, March 27, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 240,000 lb
- Seats: 190
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce RB-211-535E4 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: America West Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: MCO Orlando FL
- Destination: LAS Las Vegas NV
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 120° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; scat at 3,600 ft
- Temperature: 135°F (57°C), dew point 126°F (52°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from DFW, 38 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Passengers | 193 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N910AW the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.