Mcdonnell Douglas DC-8-63F accident near Seattle, Washington, February 20, 2000
On February 20, 2000 at about 5:37 am local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-8-63F, registered N811CK, was substantially damaged in an accident near Seattle, Washington (Seattle-Tacoma Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Inadequate inspection of the number 1 and 2 engine cowls by company maintenance personnel and inadequate preflight inspection by the flight engineer, resulting in unsecured cowls separating from the aircraft during takeoff. A factor was unsecured number 1 and 2 engine cowls.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 20, 2000 · about 5:37 am local time
- Place
- Seattle, Washington · Seattle-Tacoma Intl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-8-63F
- Registration
- N811CK · no longer on the register · serial 46147
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Before the accident flight, company maintenance personnel performed work on all four of the aircraft's engine thrust reversers. One mechanic working on the thrust reversers went off-shift before closing the number 2 cowl, and asked another mechanic to close the cowl for him. The second mechanic subsequently lowered the number 1 and 2 cowl doors but was unable to secure and lock them. He reported to mechanics on the next shift that all four engine cowls needed to be secured, and annotated this in the shift turnover log. When mechanics from the next shift arrived to close the cowls, they observed the number 1 and 2 cowls closed but did not review the shift turnover log and did not check to ensure the number 1 and 2 cowls were latched. The flight engineer also failed to detect the unlatched cowls on his preflight inspection, despite detailed procedures in the company flight operations manual for preflight inspection of the cowls (including ensuring they are latched.) The flight crew subsequently initiated a takeoff with the number 1 and 2 engine cowls unsecured. The number 1 and 2 cowls departed the aircraft during, and shortly after, takeoff, substantially damaging the aircraft's left wing and left horizontal stabilizer. The flight subsequently returned to the departure airport and landed without further incident.
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; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,800 hours in all; 7,200 in this make and model; 239 in the last 90 days; 56 in the last 30 days; 7,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 46,087 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 17, 2000; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 353,000 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT3D-7A (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SEA at 5:37 am
- Destination: ANC Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 16L, 11,900 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 100° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 43°F (6°C), dew point 23°F (-5°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:56 am from SEA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 |
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.