Boeing 757 incident near Powhatan, Virginia, April 29, 2014
On April 29, 2014 at about 7:39 pm local time, a Boeing 757, registered UNK, suffered minor damage in an incident during enroute (change of cruise level) near Powhatan, Virginia. It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 4 people had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The air traffic controller’s failure to provide required advisories about significant radar-observed convective precipitation along both airplanes’ flight routes and the air route traffic control center’s lack of a program to ensure that air traffic controllers provide this required information to pilots, which led to both airplanes encountering severe turbulence. Contributing to the airplanes’ encounters with severe turbulence was the flight crews’ failure to detect the precipitation using on-board radar and request deviations, as necessary, to avoid the hazard.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 29, 2014 · about 7:39 pm local time
- Place
- Powhatan, Virginia · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- 4 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 757 · all 757s on the register
- Registration
- UNK · no longer on the register · serial 00000
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilots of a Boeing 757 air carrier flight and a regional jet both reported to an air route traffic controller that they had encountered severe turbulence while en route on instrument flight. The controller asked the Boeing 757 pilot to confirm that the turbulence occurred between flight level 370 and 360; the pilot confirmed the information, and no further communications were made regarding the turbulence encounter. After landing, all four flight attendants and several passengers aboard the flight were transported to the hospital (later, no injuries were reported), and a postflight examination of the airplane revealed hail damage, which required the radome to be replaced. Shortly after the 757 pilot reported the severe turbulence, the pilot of the regional jet checked in the with the air route traffic controller, and the controller informed him about the reported severe turbulence and authorized a deviation. About 7 minutes later, the regional jet pilot reported that the flight had encountered severe turbulence and requested a lower altitude. The flight crew reported no damage or injuries. Review of recorded Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) radar weather information showed an area of moderate-to-extreme intensity precipitation along the airplanes' routes of flight. Despite the available weather information and numerous pilot requests for weather deviations (including before the 757 pilot reported the turbulence), the controller did not advise any pilots of flights under his control of the significant areas of radar-observed precipitation along their routes of flight in accordance with FAA Order 7110, "Air Traffic Control." Further, the air route traffic control center's facility support manager for quality control stated that the center had no program to ensure that displayed precipitation information was being provided to flight crews as required; the center has since made several corrective changes, including a remedial training program and performance monitoring, to ensure that weather services are provided to flight crews as required. In addition, if the flight crews had detected the precipitation using the on-board radar and then requested deviations, as necessary, they may have been able to avoid encountering the severe turbulence.
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 (change of cruise level) defining event
- Air traffic event during enroute (change of cruise level)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Communication (personnel) › Lack of communication › ATC personnel
- factor Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Flight crew
- factor Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Lack of action › Flight crew
- cause Organizational issues › Management › Policy/procedure › Availability of policy/proc › ATC
- cause Organizational issues › Management › Culture › Standard operating practices › ATC
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
The flight
- Departed from: MCO Orlando FL
- Destination: PHL Philadelphia PA
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 4 |
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 UNK 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.