Boeing 727-223 accident near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 6, 1998
On January 6, 1998 at about 5:10 pm local time, a Boeing 727-223, registered N845AA, suffered minor damage in an accident near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 114 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
failure of the tug driver to see-and-avoid the taxiing airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 6, 1998 · about 5:10 pm local time
- Place
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania · Philadelphia Intl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 114 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-223 · all 727-223s on the register
- Registration
- N845AA · registry record · serial 20986
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane had just been pushed back from the gate. As the flight crew were taxiing in a non-movement area, the airplane and a tug collided. The captain felt the impact, but thought the airplane had experienced a blown tire. Neither he nor any of the cockpit crew saw the tug before impact. All witnesses stated that the tug did not brake or swerve prior to the collision. Examination of the damaged tug and its maintenance forms revealed no mechanical problems. No deficiencies were found in the driver's training jacket. After a 2 week vacation, this was the driver's first day back on the job. He was driving the tug since 0430, without any reported mechanical problems. The emergency room doctor stated that there was no symptoms detected of any medical events which could have caused the driver to lose consciousness. The driver recalled that 'while driving the tug, he dropped his water container, and the last thing he could remember was reaching down for it.'
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: 12,400 hours in all; 5,646 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 58,983 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, November 7, 1997; 378 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 178,000 lb
- Seats: 159
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-9 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PHL PA at 4:58 pm
- Destination: DFW Dallas/Ft Worth TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 0.2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:51 pm from PHL
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 107 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N845AA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.