Boeing 737-7H4 accident near Laverne, Oklahoma, March 20, 2012
On March 20, 2012 at about 1:30 pm local time, a Boeing 737-7H4, registered N247WN, was involved in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Laverne, Oklahoma (West Woodward Airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured; 141 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The airplane’s encounter with severe turbulence during cruise flight, which resulted in a serious injury to a flight attendant.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 20, 2012 · about 1:30 pm local time
- Place
- Laverne, Oklahoma · West Woodward Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 141 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-7H4 · all 737-7H4s on the register
- Registration
- N247WN · registry record · serial 32508
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight had been experiencing moderate turbulence along its route. Once the turbulence had subsided, the seatbelt sign was turned off. The flight attendants had resumed their service when the flight encountered three additional turbulence jolts. The aft galley flight attendant was trying to get seated and strapped into the jumpseat but was injured when another turbulence jolt occurred. She was thrown across the galley and hit her back/ribs on an object. Flight data recorder information showed that vertical accelerations fluctuated between about 0.75 g and 1.2 g; lateral accelerations also fluctuated during this period, between about +/- 0.05 g. An airmen’s meteorological information advisory for moderate turbulence was active for the accident location at the time. A significant meteorological information advisory for occasional severe turbulence was active for an area west of the accident location.
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
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Turbulence › Clear air turbulence › Effect on personnel
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 23,050 hours in all; 18,050 in this make and model; 189 in the last 90 days; 83 in the last 30 days; 17,350 as pilot in command; 1,200 on instruments
- Last flight review: February 3, 2012
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,997 hours in all; 3,622 in this make and model; 143 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 2,810 as pilot in command; 1,347 on instruments
- Last flight review: September 9, 2011
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 20,917 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 15, 2012; 103 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 154,500 lb
- Seats: 140
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Cfm Intl CFM56-7B24 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Cfm Intl CFM56-7B24 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Southwest Airlines CO
The flight
- Departed from: TPA Tampa FL at 10:53 am
- Destination: PHX Phoenix AZ
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.72 inHg
- Observation at 1:35 pm from WWR, 26 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 1 | 2 | ||
| Flight crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 137 |
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 N247WN the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 WPR12LA144.