American Airlines Boeing 727 Turbulence Incident Near Fort Myers (N6834)

Incident Overview and Route Details An American Airlines Boeing 727-223 was operating under instrument flight rules (IFR) at flight level 30,200. The aircraft was positioned 15 nautical miles northwest of Fort Myers, Florida, and was in a descent toward Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, when it encountered unforecasted weather characterized by severe turbulence. ## Injuries and Aircraft Condition The encounter resulted in one flight attendant sustaining a serious injury and one passenger sustaining minor injuries. The aircraft itself was not damaged. Following the turbulence event, the airplane arrived at its destination airport without further incident. ## Flight Data Recorder Analysis Analysis of the flight data recorder indicated that the aircraft was subjected to a series of oscillating vertical (G) loads over a period of 50 seconds. The recorded maximum G load was 1.94, while the minimum G load was -0.55.