Saab 340B accident near Boston, Massachusetts, September 29, 2000
On September 29, 2000 at about 11:38 pm local time, a Saab 340B, registered N241AE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Boston, Massachusetts (Gen Edwrd Lawr Logan Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 26 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The operator's loss of control of the belt-loader, due to his improper decision to depress the vehicle's accelerator in the proximity of the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 29, 2000 · about 11:38 pm local time
- Place
- Boston, Massachusetts · Gen Edwrd Lawr Logan Intl
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 26 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Saab 340B
- Registration
- N241AE · no longer on the register · serial 241
- 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 chocked, the left engine was secured, and the right engine was running. The seat belt sign had been turned off, and the passengers were standing for debarkation. A belt-loader initially stopped about 10 feet from the airplane, then proceeded toward the cargo door area at a high rate of speed. The operator jumped from the loader, and the loader's vertical fin sliced through the underside of the airplane. The operator stated that when he had tried to move the belt-loader closer, he first moved the control stick to forward. The belt loader did not move, so he pushed on the accelerator. The belt loader then proceeded quickly toward the airplane, so he jumped off. Post-accident examination of the belt-loader revealed no mechanical discrepancies.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,376 hours in all; 476 in this make and model; 196 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 21,883 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 27,257 lb
- Seats: 37
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CT79B (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: YUL Montreal
- Destination: BOS
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:54 pm from BOS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 23 |
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.