American Eagle flight drops 400 feet in severe turbulence over Florida
An Envoy Air flight operating as American Eagle lost 400 feet of altitude in severe turbulence over Florida, disconnecting the autopilot. The aircraft landed safely at Key West and was inspected on the ground.
An American Eagle flight bound for Key West, Florida, encountered severe turbulence on Friday, October 9, 2026, losing 400 feet of altitude and disconnecting its autopilot system.
Flight AA3368 was operated by Envoy Air and departed Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Friday afternoon. The Embraer E175 regional jet, registration N228NN, took off from runway 1R and climbed to a cruising altitude of 32,000 feet.
Over Florida, the aircraft entered an unpredicted band of severe turbulence. The jolt caused the jet to lose 400 feet of altitude immediately, and the force was enough to disengage the autopilot, leaving the crew to fly the aircraft manually and stabilise it.
The pilots reported the encounter by radio, saying they had just passed through a large area of severe turbulence. The captain requested that a ground maintenance team be standing by to inspect the aircraft after arrival.
The Embraer 175 landed safely at Key West International Airport at 7:33 PM EDT, roughly 45 minutes behind schedule. Ground crews inspected the jet to confirm the airframe and systems were undamaged before clearing it for further operations.
Charlotte → Key West
Check flights on this routeTurbulence forecast for CLT–EYW →
Sources
- airlive.netSevere turbulence made American Eagle flight drop 400 feet and disconnect autopilot over Florida