- Date
- December 3, 1990, 13:45 local (18:45 UTC)
- Place
- Romulus, MI
- Injuries
- 8 fatal, 10 serious, 26 minor, 154 uninjured
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 3, 1993
- Report
- Board-adopted at Board Meeting
- Investigation class
- Class 1
- NTSB office
- Major Investigations Division
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA reports
- 19901203052361A19901203052362A
- Case key
- 15942
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
Lack of proper crew coordn, including virtual reversal of roles by the DC-9 plts, which led to their failure to stop taxiing & alert gnd ctlr of their positional uncertainty in a timely manner bfr & after intruding onto the active rwy. Contribuing to cause of acdnt were (1) deficiencies in ATC svcs provided by detroit twr, including failure of gnd ctlr to take timely actn to alert LCL ctlr to psbl rwy incursion, inadqt vis OBS, failure to use progressive taxi instrns in low-vis conds, & issuance of inappropriate & confusing taxi instrns compounded by inadq backup supervision for level of experience of staff on duty; (2) deficiencies in surface markings, signage & lgtg at arpt & failure of FAA surveillance to detect or correct any of these deficiencies; (3) failure of northwest airlines to provide adqt cockpit resource man- agement trng to line aircrews. Contributing to fatalities was inoperability of DC-9 internal tailcone rls mechanism. Contributing to number & severity of injuries was failure of crew of DC-9 to properly execute the psgr evacuation.
Lack of proper crew coordn, including virtual reversal of roles by the DC-9 plts, which led to their failure to stop taxiing & alert gnd ctlr of their positional uncertainty in a timely manner bfr & after intruding onto the active rwy. Contribuing to cause of acdnt were (1) deficiencies in ATC svcs provided by detroit twr, including failure of gnd ctlr to take timely actn to alert LCL ctlr to psbl rwy incursion, inadqt vis OBS, failure to use progressive taxi instrns in low-vis conds, & issuance of inappropriate & confusing taxi instrns compounded by inadq backup supervision for level of experience of staff on duty; (2) deficiencies in surface markings, signage & lgtg at arpt & failure of FAA surveillance to detect or correct any of these deficiencies; (3) failure of northwest airlines to provide adqt cockpit resource man- agement trng to line aircrews. Contributing to fatalities was inoperability of DC-9 internal tailcone rls mechanism. Contributing to number & severity of injuries was failure of crew of DC-9 to properly execute the psgr evacuation.
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
"This case was modified 1/17/2008."
On December 3, 1990, at 1345 EST, northwest flight 1482, a DC-9 (N3313L), and northwest flight 299, a Boeing 727 (N278US), collided near the intersection of runway 09/27 and 03C/21C in dense fog at detriot metropolitan/wayne county airport, Romulus, MI. At the time of the collision, the B-727 was on its takeoff roll, and the DC-9 had just taxied onto the active runway. The B-727 was substantially damaged, and the DC-9 was destroyed. Seven of the 40 passengers and 1CREWMEMBER aboard the DC-9 received fatal injuries. None of the 146 passengers and 8 crewmembers aboard the B-727 were injured. (See NTSB/AAR-91/05 for further information).
"This case was modified 1/17/2008."
On December 3, 1990, at 1345 EST, northwest flight 1482, a DC-9 (N3313L), and northwest flight 299, a Boeing 727 (N278US), collided near the intersection of runway 09/27 and 03C/21C in dense fog at detriot metropolitan/wayne county airport, Romulus, MI. At the time of the collision, the B-727 was on its takeoff roll, and the DC-9 had just taxied onto the active runway. The B-727 was substantially damaged, and the DC-9 was destroyed. Seven of the 40 passengers and 1CREWMEMBER aboard the DC-9 received fatal injuries. None of the 146 passengers and 8 crewmembers aboard the B-727 were injured. (See NTSB/AAR-91/05 for further information)
Aircraft · 2
- Registration
- N3313L
- Reported as
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-14
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 45708
- Airframe hours
- 62,253
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-7, 14,500 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 121
- Registered owner
- Northwest Airlines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Destination
- PIT · Pittsburg, PA
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- DTW · Detroit Metro/Wayne Cnty, runway 21C, 8,500 × 200 ft, concrete
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
- N278US
- Reported as
- Boeing 727-251
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 21157
- Airframe hours
- 37,710
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-15A, 15,500 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Registered owner
- Northwest Airlines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Destination
- MEM · Memphis, TN
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- DTW · Detroit Metro/Wayne Cnty, runway 3C, 8,500 × 200 ft, concrete
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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N3313L
- Age
- 52
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 23,000 total · 4,000 in this make and model
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N278US
- Age
- 42
- Certificates
- Commercial, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 10,400 total · 5,400 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 11 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- 100 ft
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- DTW
FAA reports on this event · 2
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.