# Accident 19980911034919A: Boeing 76734AF, Houston, TX, September 11, 1998 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: September 11, 1998, 06:24 local time - Place: Houston, TX - Airport: Ellington Field Airport - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing) - Operating rules: Air carrier (Part 121) - Operator: QB4R - Location: 29.6072° N, 95.1586° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=29.6072&lon=-95.1586&mi=10 - Aircraft: N316UP, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N316UP) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Boeing 767-34AF (registry code 1385212, https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-767-34af) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: GE CF6-80 series (registry code 30025, https://openairdocs.org/engine/ge-cf6-80-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BOEING 76734AF - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW98FA380](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98FA380) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980911034919A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ON SEPTEMBER 11, 1998, AT 0624 CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME, A BOEING 767-34AF AIRPLANE, N316UP, OPERATING AS UPS FLIGHT 774, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED FOLLOWING A LOSS OF CONTROL DURING THE LANDING ROLL AT THE ELLINGTON FIELD AIRPORT NEAR HOUSTON, TEXAS. THE TWO AIRLINE TRANSPORT RATED PILOTS WERE NOT INJURED. THE AIRPLANE WAS OWNED AND OPERATED BY UNITED PARCEL SERVICE CO., OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, UNDER TITLE 14 CFR PART 121. NIGHT INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE SCHEDULED CARGO FLIGHT FOR WHICH AN IFR FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE FLIGHT WAS DISPATCHED FROM THE UPS MAIN HUB IN LOUISVILLE AT 0357, FOR THE SCHEDULED ONE HOUR AND FIFTY MINUTES FLIGHT TO ELLINGTON FIELD. THE SCHEDULED ARRIVAL TIME FOR THE FLIGHT WAS 0554. THE FLIGHT CREW REPORTED THAT THE EN ROUTE PORTION OF THE FLIGHT AT FL350 WAS UNEVENTFUL. THE WEATHER IN SOUTH TEXAS WAS INFLUENCED BY TROPICAL STORM "FRANCES." THE CREW WAS AWARE OF THE WEATHER AT THEIR DESTINATION, AND MADE SEVERAL ATTEMPTS WHILE EN ROUTE TO OBTAIN UPDATED WEATHER DATA FOR THE AREA. AFTER EXECUTING A MISSED APPROACH ON THEIR FIRST ILS APPROACH TO RUNWAY 17R, THE FLIGHT WAS VECTORED AROUND THE WEATHER FOR A SECOND APPROACH TO THE SAME RUNWAY. DURING THE VECTORING SEQUENCE, THE CONTROLLER SUGGESTED THE ILS APPROACH FOR RUNWAY 35L TO AVOID THUNDERSTORMS TRANSITING NEAR THE FINAL APPROACH COURSE FOR RUNWAY 17. THE CREW ACCEPTED THE OFFER AND THE AIRPLANEWAS VECTORED FOR THE CAT I ILS APPROACH TO RUNWAY 35L. THE CREW STATED THAT THE AIRPLANE WAS CONFIGURED FOR AN "AUTOLAND" APPROACH AND LANDING, WITH THE AUTO-BRAKES SET TO THE NUMBER 4 SETTING FOR THE LANDING ON THE 9,000 FOOT (NOT GROOVED) WET RUNWAY. THE CREW REPORTED THAT THE APPROACH WAS STABILIZED AND UNEVENTFUL, ESTABLISHING VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE RUNWAY ENVIRONMENT AT 1,000 FEET MSL. THE CAPTAIN STATED THAT THE AIRPLANE TOUCHED DOWN SLIGHTLY LEFT OF CENTERLINE AND HE ENGAGED THE THRUST REVERSERS AS SOON AS THE NOSE GEAR WAS ON THE GROUND; HOWEVER, THERE WAS "NO FEEL OF DECELERATION" FROM EITHER THE BRAKES OR THE REVERSERS. BOTH CREW MEMBERS CONCURRED THAT THE FORWARD VISIBILITY DETERIORATED DURING THE LANDING ROLL. THEY ALSO REPORTED THAT THE AIRPLANES'S AUTOLAND SYSTEM CONTINUED TO ATTEMPT TO CORRECT THE GROUND TRACK OF THE AIRPLANE TOWARDS THE CENTERLINE OF THE RUNWAY. PRELIMINARY FDR INFORMATION REVEALED THAT THE AIRPLANE TOUCHED DOWN AT A GROUND SPEED OF 149 KNOTS (144 CALIBRATED). TIRE TRACKS VISIBLE ON THE CONCRETE SURFACE OF THE RUNWAY INDICATED THAT AFTER TOUCHDOWN, THE AIRCRAFT GRADUALLY DRIFTED TO THE LEFT OF CENTERLINE TOWARDS THE LEFT (WEST) EDGE OF THE RUNWAY. THE TIRE MARKS ON THE CONCRETE SURFACE OF THE RUNWAY GAVE THE APPEARANCE OF BEING "STEAM CLEANED OR SANDBLASTED." THE AIRPLANE CAME TO REST ON THE GRASS ADJACENT TO THE RUNWAY ON A HEADING OF 292 DEGREES, APPROXIMATELY 1,489 FEET FROM THE POINT WHERE THE LEFT MAIN GEAR FIRST DEPARTED THE HARD SURFACE AREA OF THE RUNWAY. THE RIGHT MAIN LANDING GEAR STRUT FRACTURED DURING THE OFF RUNWAY EXCURSION AND THE DUAL TANDEM WHEEL TRUCK PENETRATED THE AIRFRAME. THE RIGHT ENGINE SEPARATED FROM THE PYLON SUBSEQUENT TO GROUND IMPACT. THERE WAS NO FIRE. HEAVY RAIN SHOWERS PREVAILED THROUGHOUT THE AREA AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. AIRPORT PERSONNEL REPORTED STANDING WATER NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF RUNWAY 35L AND TAXIWAY DELTA. THE WINDS ISSUED BY THE TOWER TO THE FLIGHT CREW ON SHORT FINAL WERE FROM 090 DEGREES AT 15 KNOTS, GUSTING TO 23 KNOTS. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB FTW98FA380](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98FA380), Sep 11, 1998: Boeing 767-34AF (N316UP), Houston, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: The flight crew's decision to land with convective activity over the airport with a prevailing crosswind to a quartering tailwind, on an ungrooved, flooded runway, which resulted in hydroplaning and… From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.