Boeing 747 and Boeing 727 incident near New York, New York, August 9, 1987
On August 9, 1987 at about 7:15 pm local time, 2 aircraft, Boeing 747 (N93109) and Boeing 727 (N558PE), were involved in the same incident near New York, New York (Laguardia airport). No one was hurt; 528 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
- August 9, 1987 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- New York, New York · Laguardia
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 528 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft 1
- Boeing 747 · all 747s on the register
- Registration
- N93109 · no longer on the register · serial 19675
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
- Aircraft 2
- Boeing 727 · all 727s on the register
- Registration
- N558PE · no longer on the register · serial 20840
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative for the Boeing 747 final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACFT WITH SIMILAR CALL SIGNS (TWA FLTS 843H & 834; BOEING 747 & BOEING 727) APCHD JFK INTL ARPT FOR LDG. FLT 843H WAS 22MIN LATE & FLT 834 WAS 12 MIN EARLY, CAUSING SAME ARR TIME. NY TRACON VCTRD FLT 834 BHND FLT 843H. WHILE CTLG THE ACFT, JFK FINAL CTLR, INADVERTENTLY TRANSPOSED FLT NUMBERS & GAVE A VCTR FOR FLT '834H' (INTENDED FOR FLT 843H) TO TURN FINAL FOR A VOR RWY 13L APCH. FLT 843H DIDN'T READILY DETECT THE ERROR & CONTD ITS LAST ASSIGNED HDG OF 300 DEG. ABT 72 SEC LTR, FLT 843H QUERIED THE CTLR, BUT BY THAT TIME, THE CTLR NOTED HIS ERROR & GAVE FLT 843H A TURN TO REVERSE DRCTN. HOW-EVER, FLT 843H HAD ENTERED LAGUARDIA AIRSPACE & CONVERGED ON ANOTHER ACFT (PAN AM FLT 537), BOTH AT 3000'. FLT 537 WAS BEING VECTORED FOR AN ILS RWY 4 APCH TO LAGUARDIA ON ANOTHER FREQ. NOTING THE ACFT WERE CONVERGING, THE CTLRS TOLD EACH RESPECTIVE FLT TO CLIMB (WHILE THEY ATMTD TO RESOLVE THE PRBLM). FLT 537 CAME OUT OF CLDS; THE CREW SAW THE OTR ACFT, TOOK EVASIVE ACTN & PASSED WITH ABT 600' SEPN. THE JFK CTLR HAD 20/80 VISION, BUT WASN'T WEARING GLASSES AS REQUIRED.
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 NTSB's narrative for the Boeing 727 final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACFT WITH SIMILAR CALL SIGNS (TWA FLTS 843H & 834; BOEING 747 & BOEING 727) APCHD JFK INTL ARPT FOR LDG. FLT 843H WAS 22MIN LATE & FLT 834 WAS 12 MIN EARLY, CAUSING SAME ARR TIME. NY TRACON VCTRD FLT 834 BHND FLT 843H. WHILE CTLG THE ACFT, JFK FINAL CTLR, INADVERTENTLY TRANSPOSED FLT NUMBERS & GAVE A VCTR FOR FLT '834H' (INTENDED FOR FLT 843H) TO TURN FINAL FOR A VOR RWY 13L APCH. FLT 843H DIDN'T READILY DETECT THE ERROR & CONTD ITS LAST ASSIGNED HDG OF 300 DEG. ABT 72 SEC LTR, FLT 843H QUERIED THE CTLR, BUT BY THAT TIME, THE CTLR NOTED HIS ERROR & GAVE FLT 843H A TURN TO REVERSE DRCTN. HOW-EVER, FLT 843H HAD ENTERED LAGUARDIA AIRSPACE & CONVERGED ON ANOTHER ACFT (PAN AM FLT 537), BOTH AT 3000'. FLT 537 WAS BEING VECTORED FOR AN ILS RWY 4 APCH TO LAGUARDIA ON ANOTHER FREQ. NOTING THE ACFT WERE CONVERGING, THE CTLRS TOLD EACH RESPECTIVE FLT TO CLIMB (WHILE THEY ATMTD TO RESOLVE THE PRBLM). FLT 537 CAME OUT OF CLDS; THE CREW SAW THE OTR ACFT, TOOK EVASIVE ACTN & PASSED WITH ABT 600' SEPN. THE JFK CTLR HAD 20/80 VISION, BUT WASN'T WEARING GLASSES AS REQUIRED.
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 for the Boeing 747 from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 25,000 hours in all; 5,000 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 710,000 lb
- Seats: 495
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MXP Milan,Italy OF
- Destination: JFK New York NY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 13L, 10,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 13 | |||
| Passengers | 427 |
The factual record for the Boeing 727 from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 17,500 hours in all; 11,000 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: None (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 191,000 lb
- Seats: 134
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BOS Boston MA
- Destination: LGA New York NY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 4, 7,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 81 |
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.