What happened
On March 21, 2018, a Gulfstream Aerospace G V, registration N90JE, was descending toward Miami International Airport (MIA) when it encountered turbulence. The flight, operated by Clover Aviation under Part 9/1 regulations, had departed from Rio de Janeiro-Galeao International Airport (SBGL) earlier that morning.
As the aircraft descended from 27,000 feet to 12,000 feet, the pilot-in-command activated the seatbelt sign. While descending further to 9,000 feet, the pilot cycled the seatbelt sign again as the aircraft encountered light chop. The pilot-in-command observed red cells on the weather radar, and the crew subsequently requested a 20-degree left deviation from air traffic control.
As the aircraft continued its descent to 4,000 feet, it entered clouds and encountered moderate chop and heavy precipitation. During this phase, the aircraft experienced an instantaneous drop of 500 to 1,000 feet. The turbulence lasted until the aircraft reached 5,000 feet. Upon leveling off at 4,000 feet, the flight attendant informed the crew that some passengers might be injured.
Of the five passengers on board, one sustained serious injuries and two sustained minor injuries, while the remaining two were uninjured. The two pilots and the flight attendant were not injured. At the time of the turbulence, the three injured passengers were not wearing their seatbelts.
At the time of the event, the weather at MIA was characterized by instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) with a visibility of 10 statute miles and winds from 290 degrees at 9 knots.