Atr ATR 42 incident near Chicago, Illinois, March 13, 1993
On March 13, 1993 at about 2:32 pm local time, a Atr ATR 42, registered N426MQ, was involved in an incident near Chicago, Illinois (Chicago-O'Hare Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
AN IMPROPER CLEARANCE BY THE NORTH LOCAL CONTROLLER, WHICH RESULTED IN A FAILURE TO MAINTAIN PROPER IFR SEPARATION. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE INCIDENT WAS: INADEQUATE COORDINATION AMONG THE TOWER PERSONNEL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 13, 1993 · about 2:32 pm local time
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · Chicago-O'Hare Int'L
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Atr ATR 42
- Registration
- N426MQ · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
RUNWAY CONFIGURATION WAS IN THE PROCESS OF BEING CHANGED FROM ARRIVALS & DEPARTURES ON RUNWAYS 32L & 32R TO DEPARTURES FROM 32R & ARRIVALS TO 32L. SIMMONS 4321, AN ATR-42, WAS CLEARED FOR TAKEOFF BY THE NORTH LOCAL CONTROLLER (NLC) FROM RUNWAY 32R & SUBSEQUENTLY WAS INSTRUCTED TO TURN LEFT HEADING 270 DEG. THE SOUTH LOCAL CONTROLLER (SLC) THEN CLEARED UNITED 1206, A DC-10, FOR TAKEOFF FROM RUNWAY 32L. WHEN UNITED FLIGHT 1206 BECAME AIRBORNE, SIMMONS 4321 HAD ALREADY STARTED THE LEFT TURN WHICH PUT THE AIRCRAFT IN THE DEPARTURE PATH OF FLIGHT 1206. SEPARATION WAS REDUCED TO ZERO FEET VERTICALLY & .5 MILE LATERALLY. THE NLC SAID HE HAD A DISCUSSION WITH THE AREA SUPERVISOR REGARDING DEPARTURE HEADINGS (IF THERE WERE NO DEPARTURES ON RUNWAY 32L); IN THE CONVERSATION, HE THOUGHT THE AREA CONTROLLER HAD INDICATED THAT A LEFT TURN WOULD BY ALRIGHT. HOWEVER, THE AREA SUPERVISOR DENIED DISCUSSING A LEFT TURN; HIS RECOLLECTION WAS DISCUSSING THE USE OF A 340 DEGREE HEADING VERSUS A 350 DEGREE HEADING TO PROTECT FOR MISSED APPROACHES.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: balloon
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 34,700 lb
- Seats: 42
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PW120 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ORD at 2:31 pm
- Destination: ORD IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 32R, 10,003 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 20 knots, gusting 29
- Visibility: 0.5 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded at 100 ft
- Temperature: 18°F (-8°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:28 pm from ORD
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 |
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 N426MQ 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.