1991 — Feb 1, Landing plane (USAir) collides with SkyWest 5569 on runway, LAX, CA — 34

1991 — Feb 1, Landing plane (USAir 1493) hits SkyWest 5569 on runway, LAX, CA  —     34

 

–34  NFPA (Isner). Summary Investigation Report, Aircraft Collision and Cabin Fire… P. 1.

–34  NTSB AAR. Runway Collision of USAir Flight 1493…and Skywest Flight 5569. 1991, vi.

–34  NTSB. NTSB Identification DCA91MA018A…USAIR…Feb-01-91 at Los Angeles, CA.

–34  Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1990s.” Oct 23, 2008 update.

–34  Rosenker, Mark V. “Testimony of…Chairman [NTSB]…U.S. Senate, 4-19-2007.”

–34  Sturkey. Mid-Air: Accident Reports and Voice Transcripts… 2008, p. 369.

–22 of 95, USAir Flight 1493

–12 of 12, Fairchild SA-227 Metroliner

 

Narrative Information

 

NTSB AAR Executive Summary: “On February 1, 1991, at 1807 Pacific standard time, USAir flight 1493, N388US, a Boeing 737-300, collided with Skywest flight 5569, N683AV, a Fairchild Metroliner (SA-227-AC), while the USAir airplane was landing on runway 24 left at Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California. The Skywest Metroliner was positioned on the same runway, at intersection 45, awaiting clearance for takeoff. As a result of the collision, both airplanes were destroyed. All 10 passengers and 2 crewmembers aboard the Metroliner and 20 passengers and 2 crewmembers aboard the USAir airplane were fatally injured.

 

“The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the accident was the failure of the Los Angeles Air Traffic Facility Management to implement procedures that provided redundancy comparable to the requirements contained in the National Operational Position Standards and the failure of the FAA Air Traffic Service to provide adequate policy direction and oversight to its air traffic control facility managers. These failures created an environment in the Los Angeles Air Traffic Control tower that ultimately led to the failure of the local controller 2 (LC2) to maintain an awareness of the traffic situation, culminating in the inappropriate clearances and subsequent collision of the USAir and Skywest aircraft. Contributing to the cause of the accident was the failure of the FAA to provide effective quality assurance of the ATC system.

 

“The safety issues raised in this report include:

 

  • Air traffic management and equipment at Los Angeles International Airport.
  • Aircraft exterior lighting and conspicuity.
  • Pilot situational awareness during takeoff and landing and operations on airport surfaces.
  • Air traffic controller workload, performance, and supervision.
  • Air transport accident survivability, evacuation standards and procedures, interior furnishing flammability standards, and survival devices.”

 

(NTSB. AAR. Runway Collision of USAir Flight 1493, Boeing 737 and Skywest Flight 5569 Fairchild Metroliner, Los Angeles International Airport…California, February 1, 1991. p. vi.

 

NTSB ID DCA91MA018A: “SKW5569, N683AV, had been cleared to RWY 24L, at intersection 45, to position and hold. The local controller, because of her preoccupation with another airplane, forgot she had placed SKW5569 on the runway and subsequently cleared USA1493, N388US, for landing. After the collision, the two airplanes slid off the runway into an unoccupied fire station. The tower operating procedures did not require flight progress strips to be processed through the local ground control position. Because this strip was not present, the local controller misidentified an airplane and issued a landing clearance. The technical appraisal program for air traffic controllers is not being fully utilized because of a lack of understanding by supervisors and the unavailability of appraisal histories….” (NTSB. NTSB Identification DCA91MA018A…USAIR…Feb-01-91 at Los Angeles, CA.)

 

NFPA/Isner: “….The B-737 [USAir] that was involved was configured to carry 128 people including both passengers and crew; however, only 89 people were aboard at the time of the accident…. [p. 1]

 

“The incident occurred at approximately 6:08 pm which was about ¾ hour after sunset. Skies were clear and visibility was good …and the runway lights were on….

 

“During an interview after the incident, the first officer from the B-737 stated that he first saw the Metroliner after his aircraft landed on the runway. He reported seeing the tail beacon of the smaller plane directly in front of him and his aircraft’s landing lights reflecting off of the Metroliner’s propellers. The B-737 collided with the Metroliner almost immediately thereafter. The Metroliner was caught by the B-737’s left main landing gear and was dragged along by the larger aircraft…. [p. 2]

 

“Several minutes into the incident, a fire fighter was extinguishing small fires under the B-737 when he found a propeller and aircraft engine. He brought this finding to the attention of his supervisor, and the control tower was contacted regarding the potential for a second aircraft. At approximately 6:14 pm, 6 min into the incident, the tower indicated that a Metroliner might be involved…. [p. 4.]

 

“The LAX incident showed that time was a critical element affecting the survival of people during this aircraft cabin fire [USAir]. Fire entered the B-737 passenger cabin early in the incident and ignited the interior finish materials. Several exits on the B-737 were not usable, yet 40-50 survivors were able to escape in about one minute. In addition, twenty of the twenty-two victims on the B-737 were able to move from their seats toward exits before being overwhelmed by the rapidly growing fire and the combustion products that quickly filled the cabin.

 

“….Only 6 to 10 people were able to escape from the B-737 during the fire suppression and rescue operations. The rest of the people in the aircraft either escaped before the arrival of ARFF crews or were victims.

 

“Since 1965 the NFPA Fire Investigations Division has documented eleven aircraft cabin fires, and several have resulted in the deaths of many passengers. The past incidents, as well as this most recent incident at LAX, show that interior cabin fires are an immediate threat to occupants and are difficult fires to suppress unless suppression is initiated during the incipient stage. [p.5}

 

Notable CA Air Disasters: “Date / Time: Friday, February 1, 1991 / 6:07 p.m.

“Operator / Flight No.: USAir & SkyWest Airlines / Flights 1493 & 5569

“Location: Los AngelesInternationalAirport

 

“Details and Probable Cause:   Collision between aircraft.   Originating at Syracuse, New York, USAir Flight 1493, a Boeing B737-300 jetliner (N388US), made stops at Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

 

“Inbound to Los Angeles International Airport from Columbus and carrying 83 passengers and a crew of six, the jetliner began its final approach and was cleared for a landing on Runway 24L at LAX.

 

“At the same time, SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569, a twin-engine Fairchild-Swearingen SA.227AC Metro III (N683AV), a commuter flight bound for Palmdale with 10 passengers and two crew members on board, was cleared by LAX air traffic control (ATC) to taxi into its takeoff position and hold on the same runway.

 

“The descending USAir 737, upon touchdown on Runway 24L, smashed into the stationary SkyWest Metro III and the two mangled planes, fused together, slid down the runway, crashed into an unoccupied fire station, and burst into flames.

 

“Sixty-three passengers and four crew members aboard the USAir 737 were able to scramble from the burning jetliner and reach safety, although 30 were injured, 13 of them seriously.

 

“However, 20 fellow passengers and two crew members on the USAir 737, and all 12 persons aboard the crushed SkyWest Metro III, were killed.

 

“An error by the air traffic controller, in positioning both planes in a collision situation, as well as inadequate policies and procedures at the Los Angeles air traffic control tower, were the causes named in the disaster.

 

“Fatalities: 34 — 22 on the USAir 737; all 12 aboard the SkyWest Metro III.”

 

(Notable California Aviation Disasters.  “The 1990s.” Oct 23, 2008 update.)

 

Sources

 

National Fire Protection Association (Michael S. Isner). Summary Investigation Report, Aircraft Collision and Cabin Fire, Los Angeles International Airport, February 1, 1991.  Quincy, MA: NFPA, no date, 6 pages. Accessed 4-29-2016 at: http://www.nfpa.org/research/fire-investigations/transportation

 

National Transportation Safety Board. Aircraft Accident Report. Runway Collision of USAir Flight 1493, Boeing 737 and Skywest Flight 5569 Fairchild Metroliner, Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, California, February 1, 1991 (NTSB/AAR-91/08). Washington, DC: NTSB, adopted 10-22-1991, Notation 5461A. Accessed 4-29-2016 at: https://www.fss.aero/accident-reports/dvdfiles/US/1991-02-01-US.pdf

 

National Transportation Safety Board. NTSB Identification DCA91MA018A…USAIR…Feb-01-91 at Los Angeles, CA.  At:  http://www.lafire.com/famous_fires/MajorIncident-index.htm

 

Notable California Aviation Disasters. “The 1990s.” 10-23-2008 update. Accessed 10-20-2009 at: http://www.jaydeebee1.com/crash90s.html > Checked URL on 4-29-2016; was inoperable.

 

Rosenker, Mark V. “Testimony of Mark V. Rosenker, Chairman National Transportation Safety Board Before The Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Transportation, HUD, and Related Agencies, U.S. Senate, 4-19-2007.” Washington, DC: NTSB. Accessed at:  http://www.ntsb.gov/speeches/rosenker/mvr070419.htm

 

Sturkey, Marion F. Mid-Air: Accident Reports and Voice Transcripts from Military and Airline Mid-Air Collisions. Plum Branch, SC: Heritage Press International, 2008.