Boeing 737-300 incident near Seattle, Washington, February 24, 2004
On February 24, 2004 at about 5:30 pm local time, a Boeing 737-300, registered N368SW, was involved in an incident near Seattle, Washington (Seattle-Tacoma Inyternational airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 94 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The First Officer's misidentification of the parallel taxiway as the active runway, resulting in the need for a sidestep maneuver while on short final for a full-stop landing. Factors include sun-glare from wet paved surfaces, a visual illusion created by the size and shape of the taxiway, and the Captain's failure to adequately monitor the First Officer’s approach.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 24, 2004 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Seattle, Washington · Seattle-Tacoma Inyternational · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 94 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-300 · all 737-300s on the register
- Registration
- N368SW · registry record · serial 26579
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While west of the airport, the flight crew was cleared for the Bay Visual Approach to Runway 16 Right. The First Officer, who was flying at the time, made a right turn over Elliott Bay and lined up on what he believed to be Runway 16 Right, but was in fact Taxiway Tango. When the aircraft was about one mile from the end of the taxiway, the first officer noticed a yellow X located just off the northern end of the surface he intended to land on. Upon realizing he was lined up on the wrong surface, he initiated a sidestep to Runway 16 Right. He subsequently completed an uneventful landing on Runway 16 Right, and taxied to the gate for a normal deplanement of the passengers. According to recorded radar tracking data, at the time of the turn to initiate the sidestep, the aircraft was approximately 600 feet above the ground (AGL). The size and shape of the taxiway made it look very much like a runway to the First Officer, and although he was eventually able to see the Runway 16 Right identification markings, because of the glare on the wet surfaces, he never did clearly see any markings that indicated Taxiway Tango was a taxiway. Although the Captain had correctly identified the runway surface when the aircraft first rolled out on final, flight deck distractions kept him from realizing that the first Officer was lined up on the taxiway until the sidestep maneuver was initiated.
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: 25,000 hours in all; 12,000 in this make and model; 240 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 10,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 21, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,700 hours in all; 2,500 in this make and model; 240 in the last 90 days; 80 in the last 30 days; 3,500 as pilot in command; 100 on instruments
- Last flight review: November 3, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 36,024 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, December 2, 2003; 640 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 139,000 lb
- Seats: 145
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: General Electric CFM-56 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OAK Oakland CA at 3:40 pm
- Destination: SEA Seattle WA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 16R, 9,426 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Wind: from 170° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 17,000 ft; scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.62 inHg
- Observation at 9:56 am from SEA, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 89 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N368SW the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.