Boeing 737-524 incident near Newark, New Jersey, August 21, 2006
On August 21, 2006 at about 10:30 am local time, a Boeing 737-524, registered N14655, suffered minor damage in an incident near Newark, New Jersey (Newark Liberty airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
An overload failure of the airplane's nose landing gear while being towed for repositioning.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 21, 2006 · about 10:30 am local time
- Place
- Newark, New Jersey · Newark Liberty · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-524 · all 737-524s on the register
- Registration
- N14655 · no longer on the register · serial 28916
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The Boeing 737 was being towed for repositioning by maintenance personnel, when the nose landing gear collapsed forward into the wheel well. The nose landing gear remained attached to the airplane by its primary trunnion support and upper drag brace. Metallurgical examination of the nose landing gear lower and upper drag braces, and lock brace, revealed no evidence of preexisting cracking, and that they failed due to overstress. Examination and testing of the nose landing gear steering components did not reveal any pre-incident malfunctions. The maintenance technician in the cockpit reported that he was "riding the brakes" at the time of the incident. The airplane maintenance manual stated that at a minimum, applying airplane brakes while towing the airplane could shear the towbar shear pins; however, there was no visible evidence on the ground that the airplane's brakes had been applied during the tow. After the incident, Boeing issued a service letter that discussed six previous reports of 737 nose landing gear collapse that occurred between 2004 to 2006 during pushback or towing. It also addressed current towbar design, and provided recommendations for operators intended to minimize the likelihood of nose gear damage or collapse during towing\pushback operations.
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
Crew member
No details recorded.
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 22,644 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 124,500 lb
- Seats: 114
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Cfm International CFM56-3 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Cfm International CFM56-3 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Continental Airlines INC
The flight
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.94 inHg
- Observation at 9:51 am from EWR
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.