Boeing 737-524 incident near Corpus Christi, Texas, May 11, 1997
On May 11, 1997 at about 3:21 pm local time, a Boeing 737-524, registered N16618, was involved in an incident near Corpus Christi, Texas (Cabaniss Field). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 59 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flightcrew's inadequate in-flight planning and decision, and their failure to refer to the navaids needed for the instrument approach procedure. A factor was the lack of a minimum safe altitude warning from approach control.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 11, 1997 · about 3:21 pm local time
- Place
- Corpus Christi, Texas · Cabaniss Field · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 59 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-524 · all 737-524s on the register
- Registration
- N16618 · no longer on the register · serial 27331
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight was issued vectors to intercept the final approach course of Runway 31 at Corpus Christi International Airport, and was cleared for the localizer 31 approach. The first officer was manipulating the controls, the In-Range and Approach checklists were completed, and the approach was briefed. A previous aircraft had requested the ILS RWY 13 approach and the tower controller had switched the ILS localizer from 31 to 13. After the completion of the approach, the tower controller did not reselect the localizer 31 approach. The flightcrew tuned in the localizer for Runway 31; however, they did not identify it by morse code. The captain reported that the localizer for Runway 31 was intercepted, 'although at the very beginning the course deviation bar did a couple of full scale deflections, but locked on 7 miles southeast' of the final approach fix. The aircraft was in and out of a broken cloud layer at 2,000 feet msl and the visibility was about 5 to 6 miles. After verifying all instruments were properly configured for the approach, the captain looked outside and 'saw a runway at the northern edge of the cloud they were in and out of.' The runway also had the number 31 painted on its approach end. The captain reported the field in sight to approach control and he was instructed to contact tower control. Tower cleared the flight to land. The flight landed at Cabaniss Field which is a Navy auxiliary field located 5 nautical miles southeast of Corpus Christi International Airport. Cabaniss is located on the final approach course for Runway 31 to Corpus Christi. The first officer had just completed ground and simulator differences training for the Boeing 737-300/500 series aircraft, and this was the first flight of his initial operating experience (IOE) for differences training in the aircraft. The first officer had never been to Corpus Christi, and it had been three years since the captain had been there.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,500 hours in all; 8,500 in this make and model; 192 in the last 90 days; 67 in the last 30 days; 8,500 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,557 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, May 4, 1997; 73 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 113,500 lb
- Seats: 109
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Cfm CFM-56-3-B1 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Continental Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: IAH Houston TX at 2:32 pm
- Destination: CRP
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 31, 5,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 54 |
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.