- Date
- February 19, 1996, 09:02 local (15:02 UTC)
- Place
- Houston, TX
- Injuries
- 12 minor, 75 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N10556McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 2, 1997
- Report
- Board-adopted at Board Meeting
- Investigation class
- Class 1
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19960219003889A
- Case key
- 19624
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 captain's decision to continue the approach contrary to Continental Airlines (COA) standard operating procedures that mandate a go-around when an approach is unstabilized below 500 feet or a ground proximity warning system alert continues below 200 feet above field elevation. The following factors contributed to the accident: (1) the flightcrew's failure to properly complete the in-range checklist, which resulted in a lack of hydraulic pressure to lower the landing gear and deploy the flaps; (2) the flightcrew's failure to perform the landing checklist and confirm that the landing gear was extended; (3) the inadequate remedial actions by COA to ensure adherence to standard operating procedures; and (4) the Federal Aviation Administration's inadequate oversight of COA to ensure adherence to standard operating procedures. (NTSB Report AAR-97/01)
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 airplane landed wheels up and slid 6,850 feet before coming to rest in grass about 140 feet left of the runway centerline. The cabin began to fill with smoke, and the airplane was evacuated. Investigation showed that because the captain had omitted the 'Hydraulics' item on the in-range checklist and the first officer failed to detect the the error, hydraulic pressure was not available to lower the landing gear and deploy the flaps. Both the captain and the first officer recognized that the flaps had not extended after the flaps were selected to 15 deg. The pilots then failed to perform the landing checklist and to detect the numerous cues alerting them to the status of the landing gear because of their focus on coping with the flap extension problem and the high level of workload as a result of the rapid sequence of events in the final minute of flight. The first officer attempted to communicate his concern about the excessive speed of the approach to the captain. There were deficiencies in Continental Airlines' (COA) oversight of its pilots and the principal operations inspector's oversight of COA. COA was aware of inconsistencies in flightcrew adherence to standard operating procedures within the airline; however, corrective actions taken before the accident had not resolved this problem.
Factual narrative
See Aircraft Accident Report, "Wheels-Up Landing, Continental Airlines Flight 1943, Douglas DC-9-32, N10556, Houston, Texas, February 19, 1996," NTSB/AAR-97/01.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N10556
- Reported as
- McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 47243
- Airframe hours
- 63,162
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-9A, 14,500 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Continental Airlines, Inc.
- Registered owner
- First Security Bank Of Utah
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · February 17, 1996 · 11 hours before
- Departed
- DCA · Washington, DC
- Destination
- IAH
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- IAH · Houston Intercontinental, runway 27, 9,999 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 50
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 17,500 total · 220 in this make and model · 6,000 as pilot in command · 87 in the last 90 days · 29 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 210° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,800 ft broken
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- IAH
Docket · 42
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 8, 1997, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 45.4 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.