Boeing 737 accident near New York, New York, January 8, 2020
On January 8, 2020 at about 9:30 pm local time, a 2013 Boeing 737, registered N929NN, was substantially damaged in an accident during standing (engine(s) not oper) near New York, New York (Laguardia Airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 121 people were on board or involved. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
failure of the deicing truck driver to maintain appropriate clearance from the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 8, 2020 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- New York, New York · Laguardia Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 121 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737 823, built 2013 · all 737s on the register
- Registration
- N929NN · registry record · serial 33322
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On January 8, 2020, about 0630 eastern standard time, American Airlines flight 2632, a Boeing 737-823, N929NN, was damaged by a deicing truck. There were no injuries to the 2 pilots, 4 flight attendants, or 115 passengers on board. The airplane received substantial damage. The regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight was being operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 from LaGuardia Airport, New York, New York, to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Dallas, Texas. The captain stated that while sitting at gate C7 performing preflight duties he felt the aircraft "shudder". He stated that the first officer then looked out the window on his side and noticed a deicing truck behind the right wing. As he continued observing the first officer said they felt the airplane shudder again as the deicing truck pulled out from under the wing.
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 standing (engine(s) not oper) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Ground crew
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,685 hours in all; 6,758 in this make and model
- Last flight review: November 12, 2019
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,463 hours in all; 1,463 in this make and model
- Last flight review: January 30, 2019
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 174,200 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Cfm 56-7B (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Cfm 56-7B (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: American Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: KLGA New York NY at 11:59 am
- Destination: KDFW Dallas TX
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 4 | |||
| Flig | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 115 |
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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 DCA20CA049.