Boeing 737-130 incident near Chicago, Illinois, February 10, 1994
On February 10, 1994 at about 2:10 am local time, a Boeing 737-130, registered N408PE, suffered minor damage in an incident near Chicago, Illinois (Chicago O'Hare Int'L Arpt airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 100 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
AN INADEQUATE PROCEDURE FOR HANDLING OF WHEEL CHOCKS BY COMPANY MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS PERSONNEL. FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ACCIDENT WERE AN INADEQUATE INSPECTION OF THE AIRPLANE BY COMPANY MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL, AND AN INADEQUATE PRE-FLIGHT INSPECTION BY THE CO-PILOT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 10, 1994 · about 2:10 am local time
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · Chicago O'Hare Int'L Arpt
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 100 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-130 · all 737-130s on the register
- Registration
- N408PE · no longer on the register · serial 19025
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
BEFORE DEPARTURE THE AIRLINE HAD MAINTENANCE PERFORMED ON THE AIRPLANE. UPON COMPLETION OF MAINTENANCE MECHANICS REMOVED THE WHEEL CHOCKS AND TOWED THE AIRPLANE TO THE DEPARTURE GATE. A PRE-FLIGHT INSPECTION OF THE AIRPLANE WAS COMPLETED BY THE FIRST OFFICER. SHORTLY BEFORE PUSHBACK, THE LEAD SAFETY AGENT INSPECTED THE AIRPLANE. WHILE MAKING ITS LANDING APPROACH THE FIRST OFFICER COMMANDED LANDING GEAR DOWN. TWO GREEN LANDING GEAR SAFE LIGHTS WERE OBSERVED. ONE LANDING GEAR UNSAFE LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE CREW DECIDED THE LEFT LANDING GEAR WOULD NOT EXTEND AFTER MANY ATTEMPTS. THE CAPTAIN LANDED THE AIRPLANE WITH THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR PARTIALLY EXTENDED. THE ON-SCENE INVESTIGATION REVEALED WHEEL CHOCKS WEDGED BETWEEN THE WHEEL WELL LIP AND INSIDE LEFT MAIN GEAR TIRE. THE COMPANY HAD NOT ESTABLISHED PROCEDURES CONCERNING PLACEMENT OF WHEEL CHOCKS BY ITS MAINTENANCE, FLIGHT, AND GROUND SERVICE PERSONNEL.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 15,205 hours in all; 4,041 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 36 in the last 30 days; 10,777 as pilot in command; 1,880 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 59,618 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, February 5, 1994; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 109,000 lb
- Seats: 94
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8-9A (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Continental Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: EWR Newark NJ at 10:00 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 32L, 13,000 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 330° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:28 am from ORD, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 94 |
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.