Boeing 737-347 incident near Salt Lake City, Utah, December 24, 1999
On December 24, 1999 at about 8:49 pm local time, a Boeing 737-347, registered N305WA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Salt Lake City, Utah (Salt Lake City Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 135 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Improper assembly of the wheel during build up in the operator's maintenance facilities.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 24, 1999 · about 8:49 pm local time
- Place
- Salt Lake City, Utah · Salt Lake City Int'L · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 135 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-347 · all 737-347s on the register
- Registration
- N305WA · registry record · serial 23346
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During takeoff roll on a scheduled domestic passenger flight, the right main landing gear inboard wheel separated from the aircraft. The aircraft returned to the point of departure and landed without further incident. Examination of the landing gear revealed that the wrong wheel bearing had been installed when the wheel assembly was 'built up' at the operator's facility.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,500 hours in all; 1,850 in this make and model; 46 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 36,898 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 11, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 130,000 lb
- Seats: 135
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CFM56-3 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Delta Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: SLC at 8:49 pm
- Destination: DTW Detroit MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 34R, 12,004 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:35 pm from SLC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 128 |
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.