Air carrier flight crew reports encountering turbulence at FL380 near panama and loosing 2000 ft. AT...

Attributes
ACN	885938
Time
Date	201004
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	MPZL.ARTCC
State Reference	FO
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Commercial Fixed Wing
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Cruise
Route In Use	Airway A321
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Not Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Person 2
Function	Pilot Flying First Officer
Events
Anomaly	Deviation - Altitude Excursion From Assigned Altitude Deviation - Speed All Types Deviation - Track / Heading All Types Inflight Event / Encounter Loss Of Aircraft Control Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

Narrative:

Cruising at FL380 just north of irata intersection in panama control airspace; we encountered severe turbulence. At the time there was no weather indicated on the radar and the ride had been mostly ok with light and occasional moderate chop with high overcast clouds covering most of the area. When we encountered the turbulence; the autopilot disconnected itself and the aircraft rolled approximately 35 degrees and descended to about FL360. Mmo was exceeded by a few knots during the recovery. Panama control was notified immediately of the turbulence and the deviation as we climbed back up to FL380 in mostly smooth air. Dispatch was also notified and we had maintenance meet us on arrival. Fortunately; I had earlier seated both the passengers and flight attendants so there were no injuries. Always pay attention.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Air Carrier Flight Crew reports encountering turbulence at FL380 near Panama and loosing 2000 FT. ATC was informed and the flight returned to their assigned altitude.

Narrative: Cruising at FL380 just north of IRATA intersection in Panama Control airspace; we encountered severe turbulence. At the time there was no weather indicated on the radar and the ride had been mostly OK with light and occasional moderate chop with high overcast clouds covering most of the area. When we encountered the turbulence; the autopilot disconnected itself and the aircraft rolled approximately 35 degrees and descended to about FL360. MMO was exceeded by a few knots during the recovery. Panama Control was notified immediately of the turbulence and the deviation as we climbed back up to FL380 in mostly smooth air. Dispatch was also notified and we had maintenance meet us on arrival. Fortunately; I had earlier seated both the passengers and Flight Attendants so there were no injuries. Always pay attention.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Air carrier flight crew reports encountering turbulence at FL380 near panama and loosing 2000 ft. ATC was informed and the flight returned to their assigned altitude.