Boeing 747-131 accident near East Moriches, New York, July 18, 1996
On July 18, 1996, a Boeing 747-131, registered N93119, was destroyed in an accident near East Moriches, New York. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 230 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
An explosion of the center wing fuel tank (CWT), resulting from ignition of the flammable fuel/air mixture in the tank. The source of ignition energy for the explosion could not be determined with certainty, but, of the sources evaluated by the investigation, the most likely was a short circuit outside of the CWT that allowed excessive voltage to enter it through electrical wiring associated with the fuel quantity indication system. Contributing factors to the accident were the design and certification concept that fuel tank explosions could be prevented solely by precluding all ignition sources and the design and certification of the Boeing 747 with heat sources located beneath the CWT with no means to reduce the heat transferred into the CWT or to render the fuel vapor in the tank nonflammable.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 18, 1996
- Place
- East Moriches, New York · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 230 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747-131 · all 747-131s on the register
- Registration
- N93119 · no longer on the register · serial 20083
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On July 17, 1996, about 2031 eastern daylight time, Trans World Airlines, Inc. (TWA) flight 800, a Boeing 747-131, N93119, crashed in the Atlantic Ocean near East Moriches, New York. TWA flight 800 was operating under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 as a scheduled international passenger flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York, New York, to Charles DeGaulle International Airport, Paris, France. The flight departed JFK about 2019, with 2 pilots, 2 flight engineers, 14 flight attendants, and 212 passengers on board. All 230 people on board were killed, and the airplane was destroyed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated on an instrument flight rules flight plan. The investigation revealed that the crash occurred as the result of a fuel/air explosion in the airplane's center wing fuel tank (CWT) and the subsequent in-flight breakup of the airplane. The investigation further revealed that the ignition energy for the CWT explosion most likely entered the CWT through the fuel quantity indication system wiring; neither the ignition energy release mechanism nor the location of the ignition inside the CWT could be determined from the available evidence. There was no evidence of a missile or bomb detonation. For more information please see National Transportation Safety Board Aviation Accident Report NTSB/AAR-00/03.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 17,000 hours in all; 4,700 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land
- Flight time: 18,800 hours in all; 5,490 in this make and model
- Last flight review: June 19, 1996
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
Other crew
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: ctr
- Injury: fatal
Flight Engineer
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight engineer
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 27,767 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 13, 1996; 100 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 734,000 lb
- Seats: 466
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D-7AH (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: JFK Jfk Internation NY
- Destination: CDG Paris
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 18 | |||
| Passengers | 212 |
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.