Boeing 737-282 incident near Denver, Colorado, April 25, 2005
On April 25, 2005 at about 5:05 pm local time, a Boeing 737-282, registered N789TM, suffered minor damage in an incident near Denver, Colorado (Denver Intl airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 98 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the improper operation of the loading bridge which resulted in the loading bridge impacting the airplane. Contributing factors were the failure of the ground personnel to marshal the airplane on the assigned aircraft stop line, lack of supervision and communications during the marshal operations, the lack of qualified personnel conducting the marshal operations, and the inadequate training of ground personnel.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 25, 2005 · about 5:05 pm local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Denver Intl · map
- Type
- Incident · collision on the ground
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 98 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-282 · all 737-282s on the register
- Registration
- N789TM · no longer on the register · serial 23046
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THIS CASE WAS MODIFIED DECEMBER 2, 2008. The airplane was being marshalled to the gate by another operator's ground personnel. The ground personnel marshalled the airplane onto the "727" stop bar line, which was located approximately 25 feet forward of the "737" stop bar line. After the airplane was parked, the loading bridge operator maneuvered the loading bridge toward the airplane, and the loading bridge impacted the airplane's left engine pylon fairing. At the time of the incident, the loading bridge wheels were positioned within the painted hash-mark box. The ground operations investigation report stated, "A complete lack of communication among interested parties accompanied by the assigning unqualified agents and a lack of direct supervision was the major cause of this accident. The Supervisor on Duty also directed the marshaller to bring the [aircraft] up to the 727 stop block which is approximately 25-30 feet forward of the 737 stop block. This was only communicated to the marshaller and not to anyone else. The supervisor was not in attendance during the arrival of the [aircraft]." The marshalling of the flight was an irregular operation for the ground personnel which normally handles regional jets.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 16,000 hours in all; 4,000 in this make and model; 16,000 as pilot in command; 800 on instruments
- Last flight review: December 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,461 hours in all; 50 in this make and model; 6,992 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 124,500 lb
- Seats: 130
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney JT8D-17A (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ENV Wendover UT at 3:23 pm
- Destination: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 26 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.84 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from DEN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 92 |
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.