Boeing 727-233 and Cessna 650 incident near Chicago, Illinois, August 8, 1987
On August 8, 1987 at about 7:25 pm local time, 2 aircraft, Boeing 727-233 (CGYNE) and Cessna 650 (N20AT), were involved in the same incident near Chicago, Illinois (Palwaukee airport). No one was hurt; 135 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- August 8, 1987 · about 7:25 pm local time
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · Palwaukee
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 135 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft 1
- Boeing 727-233 · all 727-233s on the register
- Registration
- CGYNE · no longer on the register · serial 22345
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · foreign airline rules (Part 129)
- Aircraft 2
- Cessna 650 · all 650s on the register
- Registration
- N20AT · registry record · serial 109
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative for the Boeing 727-233 final · quoted from the NTSB record
AIR CANADA FLT 839 (BOEING 727, C-GYNE) WAS DEPG CHICAGO O'HARE INTL ARPT AS CESSNA 650 (CITATION), N20AT, WAS DEPG PALWAUKEE (PWK) ARPT, ABOUT 8 MI NORTH OF O'HARE. BOTH FLTS TKOF WITH IFR FLT PLANS. BFR THE CITATION TKOF, THE PWK TWR CTLR CTCD THE TRACON NORTH SATELLITE CTLR (NC) & OBTAINED CLNC FOR THE CITATION TO TAKEOFF ON RWY 16 WITH A PWK #1 DEPARTURE. FLT 839 TOOK OFF FM RWY 32R AT O'HARE & BGN A RGT TURN TO 020 DEG, CLBG TO 5000'. AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME, THE CITATION DEPD RWY 16 AT PWK & BGN A RGT TURN WHILE CLBG TO 3000'. THE 2 ACFT CONVERGED NRLY HEAD-ON & PASSED CLOSE TO EACH OTR. FLT 839 ESTD THEY PASSED WITH APRX 500' SEPN, THE CITATION CREW ESTD 100' SEPN. BOTH FLTS WERE IN CTC WITH TRACON; FLT 839 WAS IN CTC WITH THE EAST DEP CTLR (EC); THE CITATION CREW WERE IN CTC WITH NC. THE 2 CTLRS WERE WORKING SIDE-BY-SIDE, SHARING THE SAME RADAR SCOPE. THERE WAS AN AVAILABLE LIGHT TO WARN OF ACFT DEPG PWK, BUT IT WAS NOT BEING USED. WRITTEN PROCEDURES FOR USE OF THE LIGHT WERE NOT SPECIFIC. TRAFFIC WAS DESCRIBED AS MODERATE TO BUSY.
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 NTSB's narrative for the Cessna 650 final · quoted from the NTSB record
AIR CANADA FLT 839 (BOEING 727, C-GYNE) WAS DEPG CHICAGO O'HARE INTL ARPT AS CESSNA 650 (CITATION), N20AT, WAS DEPG PALWAUKEE (PWK) ARPT, ABOUT 8 MI NORTH OF O'HARE. BOTH FLTS TKOF WITH IFR FLT PLANS. BFR THE CITATION TKOF, THE PWK TWR CTLR CTCD THE TRACON NORTH SATELLITE CTLR (NC) & OBTAINED CLNC FOR THE CITATION TO TAKEOFF ON RWY 16 WITH A PWK #1 DEPARTURE. FLT 839 TOOK OFF FM RWY 32R AT O'HARE & BGN A RGT TURN TO 020 DEG, CLBG TO 5000'. AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME, THE CITATION DEPD RWY 16 AT PWK & BGN A RGT TURN WHILE CLBG TO 3000'. THE 2 ACFT CONVERGED NRLY HEAD-ON & PASSED CLOSE TO EACH OTR. FLT 839 ESTD THEY PASSED WITH APRX 500' SEPN, THE CITATION CREW ESTD 100' SEPN. BOTH FLTS WERE IN CTC WITH TRACON; FLT 839 WAS IN CTC WITH THE EAST DEP CTLR (EC); THE CITATION CREW WERE IN CTC WITH NC. THE 2 CTLRS WERE WORKING SIDE-BY-SIDE, SHARING THE SAME RADAR SCOPE. THERE WAS AN AVAILABLE LIGHT TO WARN OF ACFT DEPG PWK, BUT IT WAS NOT BEING USED. WRITTEN PROCEDURES FOR USE OF THE LIGHT WERE NOT SPECIFIC. TRAFFIC WAS DESCRIBED AS MODERATE TO BUSY.
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 for the Boeing 727-233 from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: foreign licence
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,005 hours in all; 4,766 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 191,500 lb
- Seats: 145
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-15 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ORD Chicago IL at 7:20 pm
- Destination: CYYC Calgary,Canada OF
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,300 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 7:20 pm from ORD, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 126 |
The factual record for the Cessna 650 from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,100 hours in all; 100 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 17,500 lb
- Seats: 11
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Airesearch TFE-731 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PWK Wheeling IL
- Destination: SBN South Bend IN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.
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.