McDonnell Douglas MD-88 N922DL

Summary

On 7 October 2011 at about 11:26 local time, a McDonnell Douglas MD-88 registered N922DL, operated by Delta Air Lines Inc, was involved in an accident near Atlanta, Georgia, United States. 81 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 October 2011 at 11:26

Classification

Accident

Location

Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Int (ATL)

Coordinates

33.6353, -84.4203

Aircraft

McDonnell Douglas MD-88

Registration

N922DL

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Delta Air Lines Inc

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Atlanta → Columbus

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA12CA038

Nobody was injured.

The tug driver's inadequate control of the tug while maneuvering the airplane during pushback.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to the tug driver, during pushback of the airplane from the gate, he turned the airplane early in order to avoid an airplane at an adjacent gate. He further stated that he did not straighten the tug in time, and it impacted the left side of the airplane he was pushing, which resulted in substantial damage to airplane's nose landing gear support beam and a puncture in the pressure vessel. According to the pilot of the flight, during pushback, the airplane overshot the centerline and was being moved back to the centerline when he observed the tug continue aft and then heard a metallic sound. The pilot further stated that the pushback did not appear to be too fast and that there appeared to be only minor directional control problems with the tug until the impact.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.