Boeing 747 accident near Bangkok, Th, October 2, 2008
On October 2, 2008 at about 3:58 am local time, a Boeing 747, registered B18202, was involved in an accident near Bangkok (Bangkok International Airport). It was flown under non-U.S. commercial rules. 1 person was seriously injured and 13 people had minor injuries; 151 others were unhurt.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. 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
- October 2, 2008 · about 3:58 am local time
- Place
- Bangkok, Thailand · Bangkok International Airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 13 people had minor injuries; 151 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- not recorded
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747 400 · all 747s on the register
- Registration
- B18202 · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · non-U.S. commercial rules
The NTSB's narrative preliminary · quoted from the NTSB record
On October 2, 2008, at 1058 local Thai time, a China Airlines Boeing 747-400, registered in Taiwan as B-18202, experienced turbulence while enroute to Bangkok, Thailand, from Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong. The flight was at flight level 400 and 128 nm northeast of Bangkok at the time of the event. Ten passengers and four cabin crewmembers sustained injuries. One passenger suffered a spinal cord injury. The accident investigation was delegated by the Government of Thailand to the Government of Taiwan.
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
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Operator: China Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: Hong Kong
- Destination: Bangkok
- Flight plan: VFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 4 | 12 | ||
| Flight crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 9 | 137 |
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.