# NTSB ANC11LA022: Boeing 737-301, N360WA, Dayton, OH, March 30, 2011 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: March 30, 2011, 18:30 local (22:30 UTC) - Place: Dayton, OH - Coordinates: 39.744575, -84.198505 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.7446&lon=-84.1985&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Initial climb: Miscellaneous/other](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/900) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 3 uninjured - Status: Completed, report July 18, 2011 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Alaska Regional Office - Parties: FAA FSDO-03 - NTSB case key (mKey): 78781 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ANC11LA022 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/78781/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=78781 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ANC11LA022 ## Probable cause The flightcrew's inadequate preflight inspection, resulting in in-flight structural damage to the airplane's fuselage from an unsecured pallet jack that was located in the airplane's empty cargo hold. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Inspection: preflight inspection](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02061510): Personnel issues › Task performance · Flight crew (probable cause); cases with it: [Boeing 737-301, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02061510/cases.md?model=138447R), [All aircraft, 551 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02061510/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Initial climb: Miscellaneous/other](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/900) (defining event); cases with it: [Boeing 737-301, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/900/sequence.md?model=138447R), [All aircraft, 1,556 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/900/sequence.md) ## Analysis The cargo airplane departed on a positioning flight with an unsecured pallet jack in the empty cargo hold. During the flight, the pallet jack moved and damaged a fuselage structural frame. The flightcrew reported that they both looked in the cargo hold prior to the flight, but did not check the security of the pallet jack. ## Factual narrative On March 30, 2011, about 1830 central daylight time, a Boeing 737-301 airplane sustained substantial damage during departure from Dayton International Airport, Dayton, Ohio. The airplane was operated by Northern Air Cargo, Inc. (NAC), Anchorage, Alaska, as an instrument flight rules (IFR) positioning flight under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The captain, first officer, and flight mechanic, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and an IFR flight plan was filed. The airplane was bound for Laredo, Texas. During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on April 5, the Vice President (VP) of Operations for NAC said the cargo airplane was departing Dayton on a positioning flight. He said it appeared that during departure, an unsecured pallet jack in the cargo hold of the empty airplane hit the fuselage frame structure, fracturing a structural frame. He said the airplane was subsequently flown to a repair facility in Tucson, Arizona. In a written report to the NTSB received April 8, The VP reported that the first officer completed the preflight inspection of the airplane while the captain did the paperwork. He wrote that although both pilots looked in the cargo hold of the airplane, neither noticed the unsecured pallet jack. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N360WA](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N360WA), registered now, S/N 23553, built 1987 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BOEING 737-301 - Registry model: [Boeing 737-301](https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-737-301) (registry code 138447R) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [CFM International CFM56-3 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/cfm-international-cfm56-3-series) (registry code 13062, turbo-fan) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 23553 - Airframe hours: 50924 - Engines: CFM International CFM56-3B2 22000 lbs thrust turbo jet; CFM International CFM56-3B2 22000 lbs thrust turbo jet - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Positioning, Part 91 - Operator: Northern Air Cargo Inc, doing business as Northern Air Cargo - Registered owner: Wells Fargo Bank Northwest Na Trustee - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Transport - Last inspection: Continuous airworthiness, March 14, 2011 - Departed: KDAY, Dayton, OH - Destination: KLRD, Laredo, TX - Flight plan: IFR ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 35; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, with waivers/limitations; last flight review February 19, 2011; seat: left; flight hours: 4,300 total, 1,500 in this make and model, 125 in the last 90 days - Co-pilot; age 32; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, without waivers/limitations; last flight review September 2, 2010; seat: right; flight hours: 3,700 total, 350 in this make and model, 110 in the last 90 days - Other flight crew; injuries: none ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Visibility: 10 statute miles ## 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 20110330030419A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20110330030419A), Mar 30, 2011: Boeing 737-301, Laredo, TX, Substantial damage. On March 30, 2011, about 2330 zulu, a Boeing 737-300 airplane, N360WA, sustained substantial structural damage during takeoff and climb out from the james cox… ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 29, 2011, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=78781. 150 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 150 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40347047&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF 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. --- 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.