Boeing 737-500 accident near Nashville, Tennessee, May 21, 2000
On May 21, 2000 at about 1:10 am local time, a Boeing 737-500, registered N522SW, was involved in an accident near Nashville, Tennessee. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured; 123 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The passenger's onboard disturbance and self-evacuation from the parked aircraft, resulting in injuries. A factor in the accident was the lack of backup electrical power to the terminal which necessitated a lengthy ground hold.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 21, 2000 · about 1:10 am local time
- Place
- Nashville, Tennessee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 123 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-500 · all 737-500s on the register
- Registration
- N522SW · no longer on the register
- 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 Nashville International Airport terminal sustained a complete electrical power outage due to transiting thunderstorms and lightning. Main terminal lighting and jetway power was interrupted for about 1 hour 30 minutes. During that time, a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-500 cleared the runway after landing, and the pilot taxied to the parking ramp to await the arrival of portable airstairs. After about an hour delay, a passenger left his seat, assaulted a flight attendant, and jumped out of the aft cabin passenger-loading door. He sustained a fracture of the left wrist, and was picked up and transported to a medical clinic by the airport police.
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
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 139,000 lb
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Southwest Airlines CO.
The flight
- Departed from: BNA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: not reported
- Wind: from 140° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,500 ft; scat at 3,200 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from KBN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 121 |
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.