Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-30 accident near Boston, Massachusetts, January 24, 1982
On January 24, 1982, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-30, registered N113WA, was destroyed in an accident near Boston, Massachusetts (Boston-Logan Inter'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 2 people were killed, 4 people were seriously injured and 24 people had minor injuries; 182 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- January 24, 1982
- Place
- Boston, Massachusetts · Boston-Logan Inter'L
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed, 4 people were seriously injured and 24 people had minor injuries; 182 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-30 · all DC-10-30s on the register
- Registration
- N113WA · registry record
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG ARR, PLT ACKD RCPT OF ATIS INFO & FLD COND RPRT, BOTH IN DCG BRAKING ACTION "FAIR TO POOR." HE WAS NOT ADZD OF 3 PLTRPRTS OF BRAKING ACTION "POOR TO NIL" OR "POOR." ACFT WAS CLRD FOR VOR/DME APCH TO RWY 15R. DUE TO PSBL WND SHEAR, 35 DEG OF FLAPS (INSTEAD OF 50) WAS EXTDD DRG APCH. AUTOTHROTTLE/SOD CTL (AT/SC) WAS USED TO CTL SPD (APRX 10 KT HI) DRG APCH. THE HIGHER SPD WAS ACCEPTED IAW CO SOP, BUT THE AT/SC WAS USED THRU-OUT THE FLARE. THE ACFT TCHD DWN APRX 2500' BYD THE DSPLCD THRESHOLD WITH ABOUT 6690' RMNG. (NO LGTD RWY DSTC MKRS AVBL.) ALL DCLRTV DEVICES WERE USED TO SLOW THE ACFT, BUT IT CONTD BYD END OF RWY & WENT OVR A SEA WALL. INV REVEALED PRECIP HAD RFZN TO FROM GLAZE ICE. OF 14 PLTS, 9 HAD NOT VOLUNTEERED BRAKING ACTION RPRTS & TWR DID NOT ASK FOR RPRTS DRG CONTD PRECIP. ATIS NOT UPDATED FOR 2 HRS. FAA REGS LACK GUIDANCE TO ARPT MNGMNT FOR MEASUREMENT OF RWY SLICKNESS, LACKED MEANS OF CORRELATING SLICK RWY SFC WITH ACFT STOP DSTC, DID NOT EXTD AUTH RWY LENGTHS FOR ICY RWYS. ARPT MNGMNT DID NOT INSP/IMPROVE RWY COND AFT BRKG RPRTD POOR/NIL
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
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 18,091 hours in all; 1,969 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 365,000 lb
- Seats: 343
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF6-50C2 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: World Airways, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: C Newark NJ
- Destination: C Boston MA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 15, 9,191 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 165° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 800 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | 5 | 5 | |
| Passengers | 2 | 2 | 19 | 177 |
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.