# NTSB ANC02LA008: Boeing 747-128, N3203Y, Anchorage, AK, December 28, 2001 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: December 28, 2001, 07:27 local (11:27 UTC) - Place: Anchorage, AK - Coordinates: 61.179443, -149.983337 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=61.1794&lon=-149.9833&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 3 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 16, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 53968 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC02LA008 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/53968/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC02LA008 ## Probable cause The flight crew's inadequate preflight planning, and failure to calculate the airplane weight and balance prior to departure. ## Analysis The flight crew of a Boeing 747 cargo airplane made a scheduled fuel stop in Anchorage, Alaska, in preparation for the final leg of the flight to Travis AFB. The accident airplane was refueled with about 100,000 lbs. of fuel. During takeoff in Anchorage, the tail of the airplane struck the runway, and sustained substantial damage. A postaccident investigation revealed that prior to departure, the crew failed to account for the weight of the additional fuel, and inadvertently used the same performance cards that were used for the previous landing. The crew was unaware that the tail had struck the runway until after arrival at Travis AFB. ## Factual narrative On December 28, 2001, about 0727 Alaska standard time, a Boeing 747-128 airplane, N3203Y, sustained substantial damage as a result of a tail strike during takeoff from the Ted Stevens International Airport, Anchorage, Alaska. The flight was being conducted as an instrument (IFR) cross-country cargo flight under Title 14, CFR Part 121, operated by Evergreen International Airlines, Inc., as Flight 203. There were no injuries to the two pilots, or the one flight engineer aboard. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight plan had been filed. The flight originated about 0712, from the Ted Stevens International Airport, and was en route to Travis Air Force Base (AFB), California. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge on January 31, the operator's chief pilot reported that after the accident airplane arrived in Anchorage, the airplane was refueled with about 100,000 lbs. of fuel in preparation for the final leg of the flight to Travis AFB. He said that prior to departure, the crew failed to account for the weight of the additional fuel, and inadvertently used the same performance cards that were used for the previous landing. He added that the crew was unaware that the tail had struck the runway until after arrival at Travis AFB. The airplane's tail sustained substantial damage as a result of the tail strike. The airplane was flown to Marana, Arizona, for repairs. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Dragged wing,rotor,pod,float or tail/skid, takeoff - initial climb - preflight planning/preparation - inadequate, flightcrew (cause) - aircraft weight and balance - not calculated, flightcrew (cause) ## Aircraft - Registration: [N3203Y](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3203Y-2010-04-26), registration cancelled 2010-04-26, S/N 19751, built 1970 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Boeing 747-128 - Registry model: [Boeing 747-128](https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-747-128) (registry code 1384894) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney JT9D series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-jt9d-series) (registry code 52054, turbo-fan) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 19751 - Airframe hours: 87407.8 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney JT9D-7F 46750 lbs thrust turbo fan - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Part 121 - Operator: Evergreen International Airlines Inc - Registered owner: Wilmington Trust Co. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Transport - Last inspection: Continuous airworthiness, December 12, 2001, 157.8 hours before - Departed: ANC, Anchorage, AK - Destination: KSUU, TRAVIS AFB, CA - Flight plan: IFR - Airport: PANC, Ted Stevens Int'l Airport, runway 32, 10,696 × 150 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 46; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land, single-engine sea; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review October 25, 2001; seat: left; flight hours: 14,000 total, 3,990 in this make and model, 11,600 as pilot in command, 101 in the last 90 days, 43 in the last 30 days - Co-pilot; age 54; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review October 19, 2001; seat: right; flight hours: 13,000 total, 1,947 in this make and model, 9,100 as pilot in command, 104 in the last 90 days, 27 in the last 30 days - Flight engineer; age 49; injuries: none; flight engineer; seat: rear ## Weather - Conditions: Instrument (IMC), Night - Wind: 360° at 3 knots - Temperature: 30 °F ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20011228036809A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20011228036809A), Dec 28, 2001: Boeing 747128, Anchorage, AK, No damage. (-23) Morning t/o (in the dark) with 1400' RVR on rnwy 32 panc a/p. momentary stick shaker was experienced shortly after t/o. speeds, attitude and handling… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- 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.