Saab-Scania Ab (Saab) 340A accident near Providence, Rhode Island, July 11, 1996
On July 11, 1996 at about 5:00 pm local time, a Saab-Scania Ab (Saab) 340A, registered N744BA, was involved in an accident near Providence, Rhode Island (Theodore Francis Green St airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person was seriously injured; 21 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the passenger inadvertently lost his balance and fell, while deplaning.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 11, 1996 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Providence, Rhode Island · Theodore Francis Green St
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 21 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Saab-Scania Ab (Saab) 340A
- Registration
- N744BA · no longer on the register · serial 340A-105
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The operator stated the following: 'As passengers deplaned at Providence, [a passenger] appeared to lose his balance as he started down the aircraft stairs. As he fell, he turned to grab the hand rail. A passenger service agent located at the bottom of the stairs tried to catch him as he fell. [The passenger] ended up at the bottom of the aircraft stairs on his back. Airport emergency service [attended the passenger's] injuries, and he was transported to the hospital.'
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 instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,000 hours in all; 3,500 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 18,159 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 3, 1996; 79 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 27,000 lb
- Seats: 37
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CT7-5A2 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Business Express Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: LGA New York NY at 6:20 pm
- Destination: PVD
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 18 |
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.