- Date
- November 30, 1991, 18:55 local (Dec 1, 1991, 00:55 UTC)
- Place
- Lubbock, TX
- Injuries
- 107 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N73SWBoeing 737-200
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report March 31, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19911130063249I
- Case key
- 18415
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 in flight collision with geese. A factor was the dark night.
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 flight was established on final approach for landing at 190 knots and approximately 4700 feet MSL on a dark night, when it encountered a flock of canadian geese. One goose penetrated the pressure bulkhead through the radome. Another splattered debris over the captain's windshield, and others damaged fairings, wing roots, and krueger flaps. The flight crew did not see the geese before impact. The first officer took over the controls from the captain and landed the aircraft without further incident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N73SW
- Reported as
- Boeing 737-200
- Category
- Airplane
- Airframe hours
- 32,985
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-9(A), 14,500 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Southwest Airlines
- Registered owner
- Southwest Airlines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · November 29, 1991 · 7 hours before
- Departed
- ABQ · Albuquerque, NM
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- LBB · Lubbock, runway 8, 8,001 × 150 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
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 46
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 19,130 total · 16,415 as pilot in command · 180 in the last 90 days · 85 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 40° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 34 °F, dew point 21 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LBB, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.