# NTSB NYC01LA094: Boeing 767-200ER, N328AA, Boston, MA, April 9, 2001 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: April 9, 2001, 08:00 local (12:00 UTC) - Place: Boston, MA - Coordinates: 42.364166, -71.004997 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.3642&lon=-71.0050&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Taxi](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/250) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 271 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 2, 2002 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 52037 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=NYC01LA094 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/52037/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC01LA094 ## Probable cause (aircraft 2) The Boeing 767 captain's misjudgment of the distance between his airplane and the stationary Boeing 737, which resulted in a ground collision. A factor was sunglare. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Collision between aircraft (other than midair), taxi - distance - misjudged, pilot of other aircraft (cause) - light condition - sunglare (contributing factor) - On ground/water collision with object, taxi - to takeoff - light condition - sunglare (contributing factor) - distance - misjudged, pilot in command (cause) ## Analysis (aircraft 2) Delta Airlines flight 1823, a Boeing 737-800, was instructed by air traffic control (ATC) to hold short of runway 27, on taxiway D-1, while American Airlines flight 1547, a Boeing 767-200, was instructed to taxi to runway 27 via taxiway D. While taxiing, the right wing tip of the American 767 struck and substantially damaged the left elevator and horizontal stabilizer of the Delta 737. The flight crew of the Delta 737 reported that the airplane had been holding short of the runway 27 hold line, with the parking brakes set, when they felt a "violent shudder." They then looked back and observed the American 767 taxiing past them on taxiway D. The flight crew from the American 767 reported that the sun was creating a glare on the airplane's windscreen; however, they had observed the Delta 737 holding short, and the captain "felt there was more than adequate clearance to continue." According to an airport diagram, taxiway D was located on the north side of, and parallel to, runway 27. Taxiway D-1 extended at an angle to the northwest from runway 27, to taxiway D. The perpendicular distance between the taxiway D centerline and the runway 27 hold short line was 220 feet. Dimensional data provided by the manufacturer revealed that the overall wingspan of a Boeing 767-200, and the overall length of a Boeing 737-800, was approximately 156 feet, 1 inch and 124 feet, 9 inches, respectively. ## Factual narrative (aircraft 2) On April 9, 2001, about 0800 eastern daylight time, a Boeing 767-200ER, N328AA, operated by American Airlines, Inc., as flight 1547, struck and substantially damaged a Boeing 737-832, N3731T, operated by Delta Airlines, Inc., as flight 1823, while taxiing for takeoff at General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport (BOS), Boston, Massachusetts. The 2 flight crew members, 6 flight attendants, and 141 passengers on board flight 1547, destined for Orlando, Florida, and the 2 flight crew members, 4 flight attendants, and 116 passengers on board flight 1823, destined for Flushing, New York, were not injured. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight rules flight plan had been filed for both flights, which were conducted under 14 CFR Part 121. According to information received from a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, Delta flight 1823 was instructed by air traffic control (ATC) to "hold short" of runway 27, on taxiway "D-1," while it awaited takeoff clearance, and American flight 1547 was instructed to taxi to runway 27, via taxiway "D." While taxiing, the right wing tip of American flight 1547 struck and substantially damaged the left elevator and horizontal stabilizer of Delta flight 1823. The right wing of American flight 1547 sustained minor damage. Both airplanes then taxied to their respective gates without further incident. The flight crew from Delta flight 1823 reported that the airplane had been holding short of the runway 27 hold line, with the parking brakes set, when they felt a "violent shudder." They then looked back and observed an American Airlines Boeing 767 taxiing past them on taxiway D. The flight crew from American flight 1547 reported that the sun was creating a glare on the airplane's windscreen, and that they observed the Delta 737 holding short of runway 27 as they taxied on taxiway D. In a written statement, the captain said: "...Although the aircraft was not all the way up to the hold short line, I felt there was more than adequate clearance to continue, and in fact moved slightly to the left of the taxiway centerline, away from the other aircraft, slowed down, and continued. A jolt/bump was felt by both of us...." The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) from both airplanes were forwarded to the Safety Board's Vehicle Recorders Division for readout. The CVR for flight 1547 contained non-pertinent audio information, which was recorded after the accident. The CVR for flight 1823 captured the accident approximately 1 hour, 40 minutes into the 2-hour recording. According to the CVR specialist's factual report, at 0801:13, BOS ATC cleared flight 1547 to taxi into position and hold on runway 27. At 0801:18, a rumbling sound lasting approximately 1.5 seconds was recorded by the cockpit area microphone, and was followed by exclamations from the cockpit crew and a flight attendant. The flight crew then notified BOS ATC, that an American Boeing 767 had dragged its wingtip through the tail of their airplane and requested the "crash crew." At 0804:40, the captain was recorded asking how far the airplane was from the hold short line; about five, six, or seven feet? The first officer responded in the affirmative. According to a BOS airport diagram, taxiway D was located on the north side of, and parallel to runway 27. Taxiway D-1 extended at an angle to the northwest, from runway 27, to taxiway D. According to a Massachusetts Port Authority representative, the perpendicular distance between the taxiway D centerline and the runway 27 hold short line was 220 feet. Dimensional data provided by the manufacturer revealed that the overall wingspan of a Boeing 767-200, and the overall length of a Boeing 737-800, was approximately 156 feet, 1 inch, and 124 feet, 9 inches, respectively. The weather reported at BOS, at 0730, included a visibility of 2.5 statue miles in mist, and a broken ceiling of 600 feet. ## Aircraft 1 - Registration: [N328AA](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N328AA-2015-01-07), registration cancelled 2015-01-07, S/N 22328, built 1986 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Boeing 767-200ER - Registry model: [Boeing 767-223](https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-767-223) (registry code 1385123) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [GE CF6-80 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/ge-cf6-80-series) (registry code 30025, turbo-fan) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 223 - Engines: GE CF6-80A 48000 lbs thrust turbo fan; GE CF6-80A 48000 lbs thrust turbo fan - Damage: Minor damage - Flight: Part 121 - Operator: American Airlines Inc, doing business as American Airlines Inc. - Registered owner: State Street Bank and Trust Co. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Transport - Departed: BOS, Boston, MA - Destination: MCO, ORLANDO, FL - Flight plan: IFR - Airport: BOS, General Edward Lawrence Logan ## Aircraft 2 - Registration: [N3731T](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N3731T), registered now, S/N 30775, built 2000 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Boeing 737-832 - Registry model: [Boeing 737-832](https://openairdocs.org/model/boeing-737-832) (registry code 13844CF) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [CFM International CFM56 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/cfm-international-cfm56-series) (registry code 13802, turbo-fan) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 30775 - Airframe hours: 861 - Engines: CFM International CFM56-7B 24000 lbs thrust turbo fan; CFM International CFM56-7B 24000 lbs thrust turbo fan - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Part 121 - Registered owner: Delta Air Lines Inc - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Transport - Last inspection: Continuous airworthiness, April 1, 2001 - Departed: BOS, Boston, MA - Destination: LGA, Flushing, NY - Flight plan: IFR - Airport: BOS, General Edward Lawrence Logan ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot, aircraft N328AA; age 42; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review March 20, 2001; seat: left; flight hours: 11,600 total, 3,240 in this make and model, 2,450 as pilot in command, 75 in the last 90 days, 54 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours - Co-pilot, aircraft N328AA; age 40; injuries: none; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review February 15, 2001; seat: right; flight hours: 6,300 total, 2,800 in this make and model, 2,810 as pilot in command, 110 in the last 90 days, 29 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours - Pilot, aircraft N3731T; age 49; injuries: none; commercial, airline transport, flight engineer; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; last flight review July 31, 2000; seat: left; flight hours: 12,596 total, 399 in this make and model, 121 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 24 hours - Co-pilot, aircraft N3731T; age 32; injuries: none; commercial, flight engineer, flight instructor; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; last flight review October 30, 2000; seat: right; flight hours: 5,300 total, 243 in this make and model, 126 in the last 90 days, 10 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Instrument (IMC) - Wind: 230° at 7 knots - Visibility: 2.5 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 600 ft broken - Temperature: 43 °F, dew point 43 °F - Altimeter: 29.81 inHg - Observed at: BOS ## FAA reports on this event (2) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20010409006369A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010409006369A), Apr 9, 2001: Boeing 767223, Boston, MA, No damage. (-23) American airlines flight 1547, bos-mco, a B767-223, taxiing on taxiway delta to runway 27, struck delta airlines flight 1823, bos-lga, a B737-832, which… - [Accident 20010409006379A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010409006379A), Apr 9, 2001: Boeing 737832, Boston, MA, No damage. (-23) American airlines flight 1547, BOS-MC0, a B767-223 taxiing on taxiway delta to runway 27, struck delta airlines flight 1823, bos-lga, a B737-832, which… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.