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Accidents · NTSB DCA18CA252 · Final report

Boeing 767 accident near Portsmouth, New Hampshire, July 27, 2018

On July 27, 2018 at about 8:50 am local time, a 1992 Boeing 767, registered N641GT, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Portsmouth, New Hampshire (Portsmouth Intl At Pease airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 250 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

an improper landing flare technique and the lack of the appropriate bounced landing recovery procedure.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
July 27, 2018 · about 8:50 am local time · cases in 2018
Place
Portsmouth, New Hampshire · Portsmouth Intl At Pease · cases near this airport · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 250 people were on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Boeing 767 38E, built 1992 · all 767s on the register
Registration
N641GT · registry record · serial 25132
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

On July 27, 2018, about 0452 eastern daylight time, Atlas Air Incorporated flight 8601, a Boeing 767, N641GT, experienced a hard landing at Portsmouth International Airport at Pease, (KPSM), Portsmouth, New Hampshire. There were no injuries to the 250 passengers and crew onboard. The airplane was substantially damaged. The non-scheduled supplemental international passenger flight was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 from Frankfurt-Hahn Airport (HHN), Hahn, Germany, to KPSM. The captain, a line check-airman, was the pilot monitoring and the first officer was the pilot flying and was completing his first operational evaluation. The takeoff, cruise and descent were normal. Visual meteorological conditions with light winds prevailed at the time of the landing. As the FO initiated the landing flare, the airplane became slightly high on the approach path (1 red and 3 white on the Precision Approach Path Indicators). According to the operator, the airplane touched down with limited flare and the engines were at nearly 50% N1, which inhibited the speedbrakes from deploying. The Quick Access Recorder (QAR) data indicated that the airplane porpoised five times down the runway. The maximum load factor recorded during landing bounces was about 2 g’s. Post landing inspection of the airplane found visibly wrinkled, dented and creased skin in the forward fuselage upper crown area, deformation to the nose wheel-well side web, and buckling/fracture of multiple frames and stringers.

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

  1. Hard landing during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event

The NTSB's findings

  • Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Flight crew

Pilot

  • Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
  • Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
  • Flight time: 19,000 hours in all; 1,984 in this make and model
  • Last flight review: June 4, 2018
  • Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
  • Seat: left
  • Injury: no injuries

Co-pilot

  • Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
  • Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
  • Flight time: 2,465 hours in all; 16 in this make and model
  • Last flight review: June 13, 2018
  • Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
  • Seat: rgt
  • Injury: no injuries

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 84,172 hours
  • Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 26, 2018
  • Maximum gross weight: 400,998 lb
  • Landing gear: retractable
  • Engine 1: General Electric CF6-80C2B6F (turbofan); 0 hours total
  • Engine 2: General Electric CF6-80C2B6F (turbofan); 0 hours total
  • Operator: Atlas Air Inc

The flight

  • Departed from: EDFH Hahn OF
  • Destination: PSM Portsmouth NH
  • Flight plan: IFR
  • Runway 34, 11,322 ft by 150 ft
  • A second pilot was aboard

Weather at the time

  • Light: dawn
  • Visibility: 10 statute miles
  • Sky: a few clouds at 7,000 ft
  • Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
  • Altimeter: 29.92 inHg
  • Observation at 8:56 am from PSM

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Cabi6
Flight crew4
Passengers240

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

2 documents, released by the NTSB on July 13, 2021. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.

The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.

Connections how this case links to the rest of the register

Aircraft
Place

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/DCA18CA252.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.