Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-15 accident near Las Vegas, Nevada, December 23, 1996
On December 23, 1996 at about 2:00 am local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-15, registered N151SY, was involved in an accident near Las Vegas, Nevada (Mccarran International airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 339 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the ramp agent's failure to maintain a good situational awareness of the push-back. A factor was the dark night lighting conditions and the general communication failure of the ground push-back crew.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 23, 1996 · about 2:00 am local time · cases in 1996
- Place
- Las Vegas, Nevada · Mccarran International · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 339 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-15 · all DC-10-15s on the register
- Registration
- N151SY · registry record · serial 48295
- 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 ramp agent was functioning as the 'talker' during the push back operation and his headset was plugged into the aircraft at the nose wheel well. The agent realized he had forgotten his lighted hand wands and moved to the wheel well to unplug his headset from the aircraft just as the tug driver started pushing the aircraft back from the gate. The injured agent's foot and ankle were run over and crushed by one of the nose wheel tires.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 16,800 hours in all; 2,862 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 32,178 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, December 22, 1996; 5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 455,000 lb
- Seats: 0
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF6-50 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Sun Country Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: LAS
- Destination: DET Detroit MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 210° at 15 knots, gusting 24
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 am from LAS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 12 | |||
| Passengers | 327 |
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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N151SY on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10 17 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Mcdonnell Douglas 254 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Ge CF6-50 238 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Harry Reid International · nearest airport
- Coleman A Young Municipal · bound for
- Accidents and incidents in Nevada 1,294 since 1982 · 223 in the last ten years
- Nevada 4,583 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/LAX97LA073.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.