Boeing 737-322 accident near Santa Barbara, California, September 2, 1999
On September 2, 1999 at about 9:06 pm local time, a Boeing 737-322, registered N371UA, suffered minor damage in an accident near Santa Barbara, California. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured and 14 people had minor injuries; 98 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight's encounter with wake vortices from a preceding heavy aircraft.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 2, 1999 · about 9:06 pm local time
- Place
- Santa Barbara, California
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 14 people had minor injuries; 98 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-322 · all 737-322s on the register
- Registration
- N371UA · no longer on the register · serial 24540
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight had just leveled off at flight level 240 with the autopilot still engaged. The seat belt sign had been off for about 5 minutes, and the cabin crew was in the process of preparing a beverage service. The airplane was crossing a VORTAC when the flight encountered turbulence the crew categorized as 'severe,' with a rapid right roll and pitch excursion. The captain disconnected the autopilot and attempted to counter the excursions with control inputs. As a result of the aircraft motions, 1 flight attendant sustained serious injuries, and another flight attendant and 13 passengers sustained minor injuries. The airplane sustained minor damage, limited primarily to ceiling tiles and seats. A review of the meteorological data showed no evidence of any atmospheric phenomena in the area. A simulation study comparing the known airplane response to control inputs versus the motion of the airplane as recorded on the DFDR data showed that the flight controls alone did not cause the recorded motion of the airplane. Radar data established that the flight was in trail of a MD-11 by 11.5 nmi and 97 seconds when the upset occurred. The MD-11 had climbed through the flight's cruise altitude and was 600 feet above the flight at the time of the encounter. Wake vortex studies by NASA have documented vortex descent rates between 270 and 440 feet per minute.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,117 hours in all; 1,743 in this make and model; 178 in the last 90 days; 74 in the last 30 days; 3,969 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 30,420 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 20, 1999; 1,366 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 131,000 lb
- Seats: 141
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Cfm CFM56-3C-1 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: United Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: LAX Los Angeles CA at 8:26 pm
- Destination: SFO San Francisco CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from SBA, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
| Passengers | 13 | 95 |
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 N371UA 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.