Boeing B777-200B incident near Denver, Colorado, January 19, 2006
On January 19, 2006 at about 6:15 pm local time, a Boeing B777-200B, registered N798UA, 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; 184 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the truck driver's failure to maintain clearance from the airplane and the boom operator's failure to adequately clear the boom from the airplane. Contributing to the accident was the low visibility due to snow and mist.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 19, 2006 · about 6:15 pm local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Denver Intl · map
- Type
- Incident · collision on the ground
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 184 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing B777-200B
- Registration
- N798UA · registry record · serial 26928
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was parked at the remote deicing pad and type 4 deicing fluid was being applied to the right rear quadrant and the right wing of the airplane using a deicing truck with a boom. The truck's boom was raised at the time. The driver maneuvered the vehicle too close to the right wing trailing edge at the aileron resulting in the mid-section of the boom coming in contact with the wing. The boom operator cleared the wing for movement when she was not actually clear. The airplane and truck sustained minor damage. An operational inspection of the truck revealed no anomalies. The routine aviation weather report reported visibility, 1/2 statute miles, light snow, and mist.
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, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 25,000 hours in all; 2,500 in this make and model
- Last flight review: May 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 14,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 190 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: August 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 34,337 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 1, 2006; 146 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 640,000 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney 4090 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Denver CO at 5:38 pm
- Destination: ORD Chicago IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 0.8 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,800 ft; a few clouds at 700 ft
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.86 inHg
- Observation at 6:17 pm from DEN, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 11 | |||
| Passengers | 173 |
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 docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site 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 DEN06IA034.