- Date
- October 31, 1979
- Place
- Mexico City, Mexico · MEXICO CITY, Mexico
- Injuries
- 72 fatal, 13 serious, 2 minor, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N903WADouglas DC-10
- Status
- Completed · report July 17, 1980
- Report
- Brief approved by the director
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- Case key
- 79687
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
NTSB brief
NTSB’s brief of the accident, as it was printed: the coded facts, with the probable cause and factors.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FILE DATE LOCATION AIRCRAFT DATA INJURIES FLIGHT PILOT DATA F S M/N PURPOSE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1-0026 79/10/31 MEXICO CITY,MEX DOUGLAS DC-10 CR- 11 0 2 SCHED INTERNATL PASSG SRV AIRLINE TRANSPORT, AGE TIME - 0542 N903WA PX- 61 13 2 53, 31500 TOTAL HOURS, DAMAGE-DESTROYED OT- 0 0 0 2248 IN TYPE, INSTRUMENT RATED. NAME OF AIRPORT - LICENCIADO BENITO OPERATOR - WESTERN AIR LINES,INC. DEPARTURE POINT INTENDED DESTINATION LOS ANGELES,CA MEXICO CITY,MEX TYPE OF ACCIDENT PHASE OF OPERATION COLLIDED WITH: AUTOMOBILE LANDING: GO-AROUND PROBABLE CAUSE(S) PILOT IN COMMAND - IMPROPER IFR OPERATION PILOT IN COMMAND - FAILED TO FOLLOW APPROVED PROCEDURES,DIRECTIVES,ETC. MISCELLANEOUS ACTS,CONDITIONS - RUNWAY CLOSED FIRE AFTER IMPACT REMARKS- INVEST & REPORTED BY GOVT OF MEX.RWY 23R ASSIGNED,INITIAL T/D OFF 23L.HIT TRUCK.WX-FOG.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N903WA
- Reported as
- Douglas DC-10
- Category
- Airplane
- Engine
- turbo fan
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Airport
- Licenciado Benito
N903WARegistration cancelled Oct 15, 1981 · Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10Airframe modelMcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10
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.
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 8, 2020, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 16.5 MB in all.