Aerospatiale ATR-42-300 accident near San Juan, Puerto Rico, October 25, 1998
On October 25, 1998 at about 5:21 pm local time, a Aerospatiale ATR-42-300, registered N143DD, was substantially damaged in an accident near San Juan, Puerto Rico (Luis Munoz Marin Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 3 people had minor injuries; 24 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to verify that the parking brake was applied prior to engine start, and the resultant inadvertent movement of the aircraft and collision with the ground power cart once No. 2 was started.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 25, 1998 · about 5:21 pm local time
- Place
- San Juan, Puerto Rico · Luis Munoz Marin Intl
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people had minor injuries; 24 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale ATR-42-300
- Registration
- N143DD · no longer on the register · serial 056
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot gave the ground marshaller the hand signals to disconnect ground power and to pull the chocks after a normal start of No. 2 engine. The ground marshaller disconnected the power cord and secured it to the ground power cart, and when she pulled the nose wheel chocks, the nose tire ran over her foot. The airplane taxied forward until the No. 2 propeller collided with the ground power cart and ignited a fire in the No. 2 engine that spread to the ground and under the aircraft. The flight attendant commanded a passenger emergency evacuation, absent any communications from the cockpit, and three passengers received minor injuries from tripping and falling on the tarmac. The airport fire department extinguished the fire 3 minutes after its initiation.
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: 5,053 in this make and model; 127 in the last 90 days; 22 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 22,818 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, September 30, 1998; 127 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 36,825 lb
- Seats: 50
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PW-120 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Executive Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: SJU at 5:21 pm
- Destination: PSE Ponce PR
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 79°F (26°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:54 pm from SJU
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 3 | 21 |
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.