Embraer EMB 145XR accident near Chicago, Illinois, September 13, 2014
On September 13, 2014 at about 1:26 am local time, a 2003 Embraer EMB 145XR, registered N16147, was substantially damaged in an accident during taxi (from runway) near Chicago, Illinois (Chicago O-Hare airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 37 people were on board or involved. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The tractor driver's failure to give way to the taxiing airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 13, 2014 · about 1:26 am local time
- Place
- Chicago, Illinois · Chicago O-Hare · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 37 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Embraer EMB 145XR XR, built 2003 · all EMB 145XRs on the register
- Registration
- N16147 · registry record · serial 145749
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On September 12, 2014, about 2026 central daylight time, an ExpressJet ERJ145XR, dba United Express flight 4528, N16147, was struck by a United Airlines baggage tractor while taxiing to the gate at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (KORD), Chicago, Illinois. There were no injuries to the 37 passengers and crew members onboard the airplane and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The tractor driver received minor injuries. The flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 121 as a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Joe Foss Field (KSFD), Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to KORD. According to the operator, the flight had just landed and was taxiing on taxi-way A from the east and had just switched to United Ground Control. The flight was instructed to taxi from A to the alley and transition to the "B" side "J"-line and taxi to gate E2. As the airplane entered the United Airlines control area, a baggage tractor drove into the path of the taxiing airplane on the roadway between the gates C-29 and B-16. The airplane was unable to stop and the right wing struck the moving baggage tractor, knocking it onto its right side. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing and right leading edge.
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
What happened, in order
- Ground collision during taxi (from runway) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Ground crew
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 53,351 lb
- Seats: 54
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: Rolls-Royc AE3007 SER (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Rolls-Royc AE3007 SER (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Expressjet Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: KFSD Sioux Falls SD
- Destination: KORD Chicago IL
- Flight plan: VFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 330° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,400 ft; a few clouds at 1,100 ft
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.27 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 1 | |||
| Flight crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 34 |
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.