Airbus A321 accident near Orlando, Florida, August 8, 2019
On August 8, 2019 at about 5:30 pm local time, a 2017 Airbus A321, registered N717FR, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Orlando, Florida (Orlando International Airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 232 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Encountering gusty conditions at a low altitude during landing and the crew’s decision to do a go-around at a low altitude with an excessive rotation rate.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 8, 2019 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Orlando, Florida · Orlando International Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 232 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airbus A321 211, built 2017 · all A321s on the register
- Registration
- N717FR · registry record · serial 7536
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The final approach was considered stabilized. At about 40 feet above ground level, a significant tailwind gust of about 25 knots was experienced, creating a loss of airspeed. The loss of airspeed resulted in a loss of lift at a low height and led to a hard touchdown. At about 10 feet above the runway (and before the hard touchdown) the flight crew set “TOGA” thrust for go-around and applied full back stick pressure resulting in a pitch increase to +9.2 degrees. The engines required time to spool up and the airplane lost altitude before it started to climb. The increase in pitch and delay in thrust caused the tailstrike, resulting in substantial damage to the airplane. The airplane was fitted with a tailstrike prevention option which appears on the primary flight director (PFD) when below 400 feet but deactivates when thrust levers are pushed to “TOGA”. Standard operating procedures for go-arounds near the ground inform flight crews to avoid an excessive rotation rate to prevent tailstrikes.
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
- Tailstrike during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Tailwind › Decision related to condition
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,854 hours in all; 10,854 in this make and model; 103 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 2,047 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: April 26, 2019
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,897 hours in all; 1,897 in this make and model; 191 in the last 90 days; 85 in the last 30 days; 0 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 9, 2017
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,504 hours
- Last inspection: type not recorded, August 5, 2019
- Maximum gross weight: 206,132 lb
- Seats: 228
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Cfm Intl CFM56-5B3/3; 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Cfm Intl CFM56-5B3/3; 0 hours total
- Engine 3: Ge CFM56-5B3/3B1 (turbofan); 9,504 hours total
- Engine 4: Ge CFM56-5B3/3B1 (turbofan); 9,504 hours total
- Operator: Frontier Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: PMW Portland ME at 5:55 pm
- Destination: MCO Orlando FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18L, 12,005 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds; scat at 22 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 77°F (25°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 5 | |||
| Flig | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 225 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DCA19LA193.