Boeing 757-232 accident near Boston, Massachusetts, February 26, 2006
On February 26, 2006, a Boeing 757-232, registered N697DL, was substantially damaged in an accident near Boston, Massachusetts (General Edward Lawrence Logan airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 146 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The deice vehicle driver's failure to maintain clearance from a standing airplane, which resulted in a collision between the deice vehicle and left elevator of the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 26, 2006
- Place
- Boston, Massachusetts · General Edward Lawrence Logan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 146 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 757-232 · all 757-232s on the register
- Registration
- N697DL · registry record · serial 30318
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The driver of a deice vehicle, and a ground employee in the bucket of the deice vehicle, were spraying the accident airplane. At the completion of the deice operation, the driver of the deice vehicle began to drive away from the airplane. The ground employee in the bucket of the deice vehicle then observed ice accumulation on the vertical stabilizer. As the driver of the deice vehicle initiated a turn back toward the airplane, the boom of the deice vehicle struck the airplane, resulting in substantial damage to the left elevator.
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, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11,363 hours in all; 4,551 in this make and model; 237 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: October 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,825 hours in all; 344 in this make and model; 245 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: September 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 22,539 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 232,000 lb
- Seats: 207
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Pratt & Whitney 2037 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Pratt & Whitney 2037 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BOS Boston MA
- Destination: RSW Fort Myers FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 130° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,200 ft
- Temperature: 27°F (-3°C), dew point 23°F (-5°C)
- Altimeter: 29.81 inHg
- Observation at 11:54 pm from BOS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 140 |
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.