Boeing 767-231ER incident near Belleville, Illinois, August 22, 1987
On August 22, 1987 at about 6:12 pm local time, a Boeing 767-231ER, registered N609TW, suffered minor damage in an incident near Belleville, Illinois (Scott Afb airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 3 people had minor injuries; 178 others were unhurt. 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
- August 22, 1987 · about 6:12 pm local time
- Place
- Belleville, Illinois · Scott Afb · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- 3 people had minor injuries; 178 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 767-231ER · all 767-231ERs on the register
- Registration
- N609TW · no longer on the register · serial 22572
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12,336 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, June 30, 1987; 614 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 310,000 lb
- Seats: 192
- Landing gear: retractable
- Operator: Transworld Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: SFO San Francisco CA at 3:47 pm
- Destination: BLV St Louis MO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 32, 7,061 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:12 pm from BLV
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 9 | |||
| Passengers | 3 | 169 |
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.