# Incident 20130311002509I: Airbus Industrie A320-232, Philadelphia, PA, March 11, 2013

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 11, 2013, 10:15 local time
- Place: Philadelphia, PA
- Airport: Philadelphia International
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Taxi
- Operating rules: Air carrier (Part 121)
- Operator: USAA
- Location: 39.8721° N, 75.2407° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at PHILADELPHIA INTL (PHL), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8721&lon=-75.2407&mi=10
- Aircraft: N657AW, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N657AW) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Airbus Industrie A320-232 (registry code 3930326, https://openairdocs.org/model/airbus-industrie-a320-232) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: IAE V2500SERIES (registry code 34601, https://openairdocs.org/engine/iae-v2500series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AIRBUS INDUSTRIE A320-232
- Reported engine: IAE V2500SERIES
- People aboard: 145
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130311002509I

## Narrative

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

ON MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2013, AT 1415Z, (10:15 A. M. LOCAL), AT PHILADELPHIA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, (PHL), US AIRWAYS FLIGHT #37, AN AIRBUS 320, REGISTERED AS N657AW, WAS TRAVELING WEST ON TAXIWAY K WITH 139 PASSENGERS AND 6 CREW MEMBERS WITH THE INTENT TO TAKEOFF FOR LAX. ON OR ABOUT THE INTERSECTION OF TAXIWAYS K AND K5, A TRAVEL TRAILER, (APPROXIMATELY 4? BY 8?), CONTAINING A SMALL WASTE FUEL BIN, DETACHED FROM ITS TOW VEHICLE, A PICKUP TRUCK OWNED AND OPERATED BY SKYTANKING INC. THE TRAILER TRAVELED INTO THE PATH OF THE MOVING AIRCRAFT, PASSING IN FRONT OF THE #2 ENGINE AND LODGING BETWEEN THE #3 MAIN LANDING GEAR TIRE AND THE LOWER MAIN GEAR DOOR, CUTTING THE TIRE AND CAUSING DAMAGE TO THE GEAR DOOR. THE AIRBUS PILOT AND COPILOT WERE UNAWARE OF THE TRAILER AND DID NOT FEEL THE IMPACT. A SOUTHWEST AIRLINES EMPLOYEE, TRAVELLING IN A VEHICLE EAST ON THE MOVEMENT AREA ADJACENT TO TAXIWAY K, OBSERVED THE EVENT WITH THE AIRCRAFT MOVING AND DRAGGING THE TRAILER. HE IMMEDIATELY PARKED HIS VEHICLE ON THE MOVEMENT AREA AND RAN TOWARDS THE AIRCRAFT WHERE HE ATTRACTED THE ATTENTION OF THE PILOT AND USING HAND SIGNALS, DIRECTED THE PILOT TO STOP THE AIRCRAFT AND SHUT DOWN THE #2 ENGINE. AFTER COMPLYING, THE COPILOT OPENED HIS SIDE WINDOW AND ASKED WHAT WAS WRONG. HE WAS INFORMED OF THE EVENT AND CONTACTED GROUND CONTROL. AFTER EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT BY US AIRWAYS EMPLOYEES, THE AIRCRAFT WAS RELOCATED BY TUG BACK TO A TERMINAL WHERE THE PASSENGERS WERE DEPLANED WITHOUT INCIDENT OR INJURIES. AFTER PASSENGER DISEMBARKING, THE AIRCRAFT WAS RELOCATED TO THE US AIRWAYS HANGER FOR FURTHER MAINTENANCE ACTIONS.

SKYTANKING MANAGER REPORTS THAT THE EMPLOYEE DRIVING THE TRUCK WAS IMMEDIATELY REQUIRED TO UNDERGO DRUG TESTING AND ADMITTED TO NOT FOLLOWING COMPANY STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES BY FAILING TO CONNECT THE EMERGENCY CHAINS OR RETRACTING THE TRAILER TONGUE STAND AND WHEEL. THE EMPLOYEE HAS BEEN SUSPENDED PENDING RESULTS OF HIS DRUG TEST AND A COMPANY INCIDENT REVIEW.

THE AIRCRAFT TIRE WAS REPLACED AND A FERRY PERMIT ISSUED TO RELOCATE THE AIRCRAFT TO PHOENIX AZ., (PHX), FOR GEAR DOOR REPLACEMENT.

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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