British Aerospace 146-200 incident near Chicago, Illinois, January 18, 1991
On January 18, 1991 at about 6:40 pm local time, a British Aerospace 146-200, registered N608AW, suffered minor damage in an incident near Chicago, Illinois (O'Hare Field). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 39 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
COMPANY PROCEDURES AND DIRECTIVES NOT BEING FOLLOWED BY GROUND PERSONNEL. A FACTOR ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACCIDENT IS COMPLACENCY BY COMPANY/OPERATOR MANAGEMENT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 18, 1991 · about 6:40 pm local time · cases in 1991
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · O'Hare Field · cases near this airport
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 39 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- British Aerospace 146-200
- Registration
- N608AW · not in the FAA's current or past register files · serial E-2049
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INCIDENT TRANSPORT AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH ANOTHER PARKED TRANSPORT AIRPLANE WHILE TAXIING AWAY FROM A GATE AT THE START OF A REVENUE FLIGHT. BOTH AIRPLANES SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGE. THE PILOT STOPPED THE AIRPLANE AND SHUT IT DOWN. THE PASSENGERS AND CREW DEPLANED USING THE NORMAL CABIN EXITS. THE INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT SIGNALMEN AND WINGWALKERS WERE ROUTINELY GROUND GUIDING AIRCRAFT AT THAT PARKING LOCATION TO A PARKING SPOT THAT WAS DISPLACED TO THE LEFT OF THE PAINTED TAXI GUIDE STRIPES. THIS PRACTICE ALLOWES THE TAIL OF A DEPARTING AIRPLANE TO TRANSCRIBE AN ARC WHICH PASSES THROUGH AN ADJACENT DEDICATED PARKING SPACE AS IT TURNES AWAY FROM THE GATE. WHEN THIS SPACE IS OCCUPIED BY A LONGER AIRPLANE THERE IS INSUFFICIENT CLEARANCE TO ALLOW THE TAIL SURFACES OF THE TWO AIRCRAFT TO CLEAR EACH OTHER. ACCORDING TO RAMP PERSONNEL AN EMERGENCY STOP HAND SIGNAL WAS ISSUED BY THE WINGWALKER BUT WAS NOT RECOGNIZED IN TIME TO STOP THE INCIDENT.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 22,500 hours in all; 4,800 in this make and model; 225 in the last 90 days; 75 in the last 30 days; 21,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 89,500 lb
- Seats: 106
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming ALF 502 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air Wisconsin
The flight
- Destination: GRB Green Bay WI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 4 | |||
| Passengers | 35 |
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 N608AW the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- British Aerospace 133 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming ALF 502 25 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Chicago O'Hare International · nearest airport
- Green Bay/Austin Straubel International · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Illinois 2,118 since 1982 · 251 in the last ten years
- Illinois 8,071 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N608AW 2 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CHI91IA073.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.