- Date
- September 15, 2014, 20:27 local (Sep 16, 2014, 00:27 UTC)
- Place
- Miami, FL
- Injuries
- 172 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N654ABoeing 757 223
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Abnormal runway contact
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Status
- Completed · report September 5, 2018
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Major Investigations Division
- Case key
- 90092
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The failure of the first officer to control the airplane pitch after touchdown. Contributing to the accident was the first officers inexperience in the aircraft type.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
On September 15, 2014, at about 2027 eastern daylight time, American Airlines flight 2404, a B757-200, N654A, experienced a tail strike during landing at Miami International Airport (KMIA), Miami, Florida. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to the aft pressure bulkhead and there were no injuries to the 172 passengers and crew onboard. The flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 121 as a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (KSJU), San Juan, Puerto Rico to KMIA. According to the operator, the first officer (FO) was the pilot flying and the captain was the pilot monitoring and was initial operating experience (IOE) training for the FO. The flight crew reported that they had the ILS tuned and the approach was stabilized. They reported that the main gear touchdown was smooth but that the nose came up rapidly before the captain could make the "deployed" call for the spoilers. The captain reportedly quickly grabbed the yoke and lowered the nose to the ground. Postflight maintenance inspection found damage to the aft fuselage skin and substantial damage to the aft pressure bulkhead.
Factual narrative
On September 15, 2014, at about 2027 eastern daylight time, American Airlines flight 2404, a B757-200, N654A, experienced a tail strike during landing at Miami International Airport (KMIA), Miami, Florida. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to the aft pressure bulkhead and there were no injuries to the 172 passengers and crew onboard. The flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 121 as a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (KSJU), San Juan, Puerto Rico to KMIA. According to the operator, the first officer (FO) was the pilot flying and the captain was the pilot monitoring and was initial operating experience (IOE) training for the FO. The flight crew reported that they had the ILS tuned and the approach was stabilized. They reported that the main gear touchdown was smooth but that the nose came up rapidly before the captain could make the "deployed" call for the spoilers. The captain reportedly quickly grabbed the yoke and lowered the nose to the ground. Postflight maintenance inspection found damage to the aft fuselage skin and substantial damage to the aft pressure bulkhead.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N654A
- Reported as
- Boeing 757 223 (223)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24612
- Built
- 1991
- Airframe hours
- 71,575.49
- Engines
- Rolls-Royc RB.211 SERIES, 42,500 lbs thrust, turbo fanRolls-Royc RB.211 SERIES, 42,500 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- American Airlines Inc
- Registered owner
- American Airlines Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Departed
- SJU · San Juan, PR
- Destination
- MIA · Miami, FL
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- MIA · Miami Intl, runway 09, 13,016 × 150 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Data recorder, Auto-pilot, Stall warning system
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.
Flight crew · 6
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Check pilot
- Age
- 54
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Medical
- Class 1, Unknown
- Last flight review
- January 26, 2014
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 5,470 in this make and model
- Role
- Co-pilot
- Age
- 36
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Medical
- Class 1, Unknown
- Last flight review
- August 19, 2014
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 22 in this make and model
- Role
- Cabin crew
- Injuries
- None
- Role
- Cabin crew
- Injuries
- None
- Role
- Cabin crew
- Injuries
- None
- Role
- Cabin crew
- Injuries
- None
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night
- Wind
- 90° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.10 inHg
Docket · 5
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 20, 2018, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 50.7 MB in all.