Mcdonnell Douglas DC10-10 incident near Chicago, Illinois, January 14, 1983
On January 14, 1983 at about 3:04 am local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC10-10, registered N115AA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Chicago, Illinois (O'Hare airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 201 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 14, 1983 · about 3:04 am local time
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · O'Hare
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 201 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC10-10 · all DC10-10s on the register
- Registration
- N115AA · no longer on the register · serial 46515
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
TOO HIGH A DECK ANGLE WAS ATTAINED DURING THE FLARE & THE ACFT FLOATED DRAGGING ITS TAIL ON TOUCHDOWN & LEAVING A 2 FT PIECE OF METAL ON THE RWY. THE FIRST OFFICER WAS AT THE CONTROLS.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 19,200 hours in all; 700 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 29,165 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 154 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 115,000 lb
- Seats: 269
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF-6K (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Dallas TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 32, 11,600 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 040° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,900 ft; not recorded at 1,900 ft
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Observation at 7:00 pm from ORD
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 195 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N115AA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.