Boeing 727-223 incident near Seattle, Washington, January 7, 1984
On January 7, 1984 at about 8:53 am local time, a Boeing 727-223, registered N876AA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Seattle, Washington (Sea-Tac Int'L Arpt airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 81 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- January 7, 1984 · about 8:53 am local time
- Place
- Seattle, Washington · Sea-Tac Int'L Arpt · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 81 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-223 · all 727-223s on the register
- Registration
- N876AA · registry record · serial 21388
- 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 CAPT STATED THAT UPON VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE RWY, THE ACFT WAS DISPLACED SLIGHTLY TO THE LT & HE CORRECTED TOWARD CENTERLINE WITH RT RUDDER. WING TIP CONTACT WAS NEITHER HEARD NOT FELT IN THE COCKPIT. THERE WERE SEVERAL CONCURRENT REPORTS OF ARRIVING ACFT BEING DISPLACED TO THE LT WHEN EXECUTING THE RWY 34 ILS. A FLT & GRD CHECK OF THE SYSTEM REPORTED OPERATIONS TO BE WITHIN TOLERANCE.
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: 14,300 hours in all; 95 in the last 90 days; 46 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 16,343 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme; 1,020 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 142,000 lb
- Seats: 134
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-9 (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Alaska Airlines INC
The flight
- Departed from: ANC Anchorage AK
- Destination: SEA Seattle WA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 34, 11,900 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 020° at 6 knots
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 am from SEA, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 8 | |||
| Passengers | 73 |
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.