Boeing 737-49R accident near Flushing, New York, September 16, 2000
On September 16, 2000, a Boeing 737-49R, registered N461PR, was substantially damaged in an accident near Flushing, New York (La Guardia airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 58 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The tug operator's inadequate visual lookout. A factor in this accident was the night light condition.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 16, 2000
- Place
- Flushing, New York · La Guardia
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 58 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-49R · all 737-49Rs on the register
- Registration
- N461PR · no longer on the register · serial 28882
- 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 airplane was being pushed back at night by three ground crew employees when it's rudder struck a parked airplane. Both 'wing walkers' were equipped with night wands, and had signaled the tug driver to stop prior to the accident. One wing walker stated he noticed that the airplane was getting 'very close' to the MD-80, and signaled the tug operator to stop 'several times' before the accident. The tug operator stated, '...one of the wing walkers signaled me to stop, but I was looking at the other wing walker. He told me to stop, but when I hit the brake it was too late....' The tug operator had been hired and began performing airplane pushbacks in December 1998. The weather reported about the time of the pushback, included: a visibility of 10 statue miles, and scattered clouds at 8, 500 feet msl.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,694 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,087 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, August 29, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 143,500 lb
- Seats: 155
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Cfm CFM56-3C1 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LGA
- Destination: DET Detroit MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Wind: from 330° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 8,500 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 53 |
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.