Boeing 727-100 incident near Denver, Colorado, July 26, 1988
On July 26, 1988 at about 2:19 pm local time, a Boeing 727-100, registered N1973, suffered minor damage in an incident near Denver, Colorado (Stapleton Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 26, 1988 · about 2:19 pm local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Stapleton Int'L · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-100 · all 727-100s on the register
- Registration
- N1973 · registry record · serial 18429
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE TAXIING TO THE CARGO RAMP, THE LEFT WING COLLIDED WITH A LIGHTPOLE AS THE FLIGHT CREW WERE DIRECTED BY GND PERS. ONE TAXI DIRECTOR ATTEMPTED TO HANDOFF THE FLIGHT TO ANOTHER BUT THE SECOND MISUNDERSTOOD AND TURNED AWAY. A THIRD PERSON, WHO WAS NOT A TAXI DIRECTOR BUT WAS A SAFETY LOOKOUT, BEGAN TO GIVE TAXI SIGNALS AND THE FLIGHTCREW FOLLOWED HIM. THIS PERSON DETERMINED THAT THE WING WOULD CLEAR THE POLE AND DIRECTED A TURN. HE BELIEVED THE FLIGHTCREW DID NOT TURN AS RAPIDLY AS HE HAD DIRECTED, RESULTING IN THE WING CONTACTING THE POLE. THE SAFETY LOOKOUT SAID HE ATTEMPTED TO STOP THE ACFT BUT HE WAS OUT OF VIEW UNDER THE ACFT NOSE AND HAD TO RUN OUT 15 FEET TO BE SEEN BY THE FLIGHTCREW. THE WINGTIPS ARE DIFFICULT TO SEE FROM THE 727 COCKPIT.
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: 18,000 hours in all; 13,500 in this make and model; 160 in the last 90 days; 90 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 169,500 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Connie Kallitta Services
The flight
- Departed from: LCK Columbus OH at 11:00 am
- Destination: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 26R, 6,697 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from DEN, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 DEN88IA167.