# Accident 20031114035379A: Boeing 747422, San Francisco, CA, November 14, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 14, 2003, 15:25 local time
- Place: San Francisco, CA
- Airport: San Francisco International
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff Ground Roll
- Operating rules: Air carrier (Part 121)
- Operator: UALA
- Location: 37.6189° N, 122.3914° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.6189&lon=-122.3914&mi=10
- Aircraft: N178UA, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N178UA-2018-04-09) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Boeing 747-422 (registry code 1384935, https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-747-422) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney PW4000 series (registry code 52119, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pw4000-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BOEING 747422
- People aboard: 356
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 6,174 total, 772 in this make and model, 91 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX04LA050](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX04LA050) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20031114035379A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) ON NOVEMBER 14, 2003, ABOUT 1250 PACIFIC STANDARD TIME, UNITED AIRLINES FLIGHT 805, A BOEING 747-422, N178UA, EXPERIENCED A TAIL STRIKE ON ROTATION AT SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA. UNITED AIRLINES, INC., WAS OPERATING THE AIRPLANE AS A SCHEDULED INTERNATIONAL PASSENGER FLIGHT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 121. THE AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT LICENSED CAPTAIN, 3 AIRCREW MEMBERS, 17 FLIGHT ATTENDANTS, AND 335 PASSENGERS WERE NOT INJURED. THE FLIGHT WAS ENROUTE AS A NON-STOP FLIGHT TO HONG KONG CHINA. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, AND AN INSTRUMENT FLIGHT RULES (IFR) FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED. THE CREW REPORTED THAT THEY SUSPECTED A TAIL STRIKE ON TAKEOFF. THEY DUMPED FUEL AND RETURNED TO LAND AT SAN FRANCISCO. EVALUATION OF THE DAMAGE RESULTED IN STRUCTURAL REPAIR TO TWO STRUCTURAL MEMBERS.

## 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 LAX04LA050](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX04LA050), Nov 14, 2003: Boeing 747-422 (N178UA), San Francisco, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: a tail strike due to a combination of the wind shifting from a headwind to a tailwind during rotation, and the pilot's control inputs for the crosswind condition.

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.

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