Boeing 747-130 incident near Jamaica, New York, September 15, 1985
On September 15, 1985 at about 9:14 pm local time, a Boeing 747-130, registered N780T, suffered minor damage in an incident near Jamaica, New York (Jfk Int'L Airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 507 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 15, 1985 · about 9:14 pm local time
- Place
- Jamaica, New York · Jfk Int'L Airport · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 507 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747-130 · all 747-130s on the register
- Registration
- N780T · no longer on the register · serial 19746
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS MAKING A VISUAL APP TO RWY 31R AT JAMAICA NY WAEN THE BOTTOM OF THE AFT 60 FT OF THE FUSELAGE MADE GROUND CONTACT. THE LEFT OUTFLOW VALVE WAS SCRAPED AND THE REAR DRAIN MAST WAS SEPARATED. PART OF THE APR ACCESS DOOR AND SEVERAL STRINGERS & FORMERS WERE DAMAGED. INTERNAL DAMAGE IS BEING EVALUATED. DAMAGE STARTED AT STATION 2080 & EXTENDED TO THE GEAR PAST STA 2742.
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: 159 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 48,772 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 29 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 734,000 lb
- Seats: 500
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Transamerica Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: LSZH Zurich OF
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 31R, 10,001 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from JFK, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 16 | |||
| Passengers | 491 |
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.