- Date
- August 5, 1988, 17:55 local (21:55 UTC)
- Place
- Atlanta, GA
- Injuries
- 199 uninjured
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N421EADouglas DC-9-51N1282LDouglas DC-9-51
- Weather
- Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 25, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA reports
- 19880805037531I19880805037532I
- Case key
- 7640
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The eastern DC-9 collided with the delta DC-9 during taxi. Ground personnel had cleared the eastern flight forward after the pilot had completed a powerback which left the airplane perpendicular to the delta flight. Due to the long fuselage and the relative closeness, when eastern started to taxi forward, the vertical fin contacted delta's horizontal stabilator. The wing walker was not able to gain the attention of the ground guide to stop the airplane before the collision; nor had the ground guide insured adequate clearance before directing eastern to taxi.
The eastern DC-9 collided with the delta DC-9 during taxi. The ground personnel had cleared the eastern flight forward after the pilot had completed a powerback which left the airplane perpendicular to the delta flight. Due to the long fuselage and the relative closeness, when eastern started to taxi forward, the vertical fin contacted delta's horizontal stabilator. The wing walker was not able to gain the attention of the ground guide to stop the airplane before the collision; nor had the ground guide insured adequate clearance before directing eastern to taxi.
Aircraft · 2
- Registration
- N421EA
- Reported as
- Douglas DC-9-51
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 47689
- Engine
- P&W JT8-D-17, 16,000 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Registered owner
- Eastern Airlines, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- ATL · Hartsfield
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
- Registration
- N1282L
- Reported as
- Douglas DC-9-51
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 47378
- Engine
- P&W JT8, 16,000 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Registered owner
- Delta Airlines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- ATL · Hartsfield
Flight crew · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N421EA
- Age
- 51
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 9,403 total · 7,560 in this make and model · 2,421 as pilot in command
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N1282L
- Age
- 46
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 9,000 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Day
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
FAA reports on this event · 2
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N421EA · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.