Los Angeles runway disaster: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia
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{{short description|1991 runway collision between two airplanes}}
<noinclude>{{Requested move notice|1=1991 Los Angeles Airport runway collision|2=Talk:Los Angeles runway disaster#Requested move 4 October 2024}}
</noinclude>{{Use mdy dates |date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
| occurrence_type = Accident
| name = Los Angeles runway disaster<br />{{nobold|{{small|USAir Flight 1493{{·}}SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569}}}}
| image = USAir 1493 wreckage.jpg
| image_upright = 1.15
| alt =
| caption = The wreckage of Flight 1493 after the accident.
| date = {{startFebruary date1, and age|1991|02|01|mf=yes}}
| type = Runway collision caused by an [[air traffic controller]] error
| site = {{nowrap|[[Los Angeles International Airport]]<br, />[[Los Angeles]], California<br, />United States}}
| total_injuries = 29
| coordinates = {{coord|33.9494|N|118.4095|W|region:US-CA_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
| total_fatalities = 35{{efn|name="fatality footnote"}}
| total_survivors = 66
| plane1_image = USAir_Boeing_737Boeing 737-300;_N360AU@YYZ,_April_19863B7 USAir N360AU 7283623.jpg
| plane1_image_upright = 1.15
| plane1_caption = ''N388US'', the Boeing 737 involved in the accident, with previous registration
| plane1_type = [[Boeing 737 Classic|Boeing 737-3B7]]
| aircraft_name =
| plane1_operator = [[US Airways|USAir]]
| plane1_IATA = US1493
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| plane1_tailnum = N388US
| plane1_origin = [[Syracuse Hancock International Airport]]
| stopover =
| plane1_stopover0 = [[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport|Washington National Airport]]
| plane1_stopover1 = [[Port Columbus International Airport]]
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| plane1_injuries = 29 (12 serious, 17 minor)
| plane1_fatalities = 23{{efn|name="fatality footnote"}}
| missing =
| plane1_survivors = 66
| plane2_image = File:Orange County (before it became John Wayne), Skywest SA227AC Metroliner N683AV operated on behalf of Delta Connection (cropped).jpg
| plane2_image_upright = 1.15
| plane2_caption = N683AV, the SkyWest Airlines Fairchild Metroliner involved in the accident
| plane2_type = [[Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner]]
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| plane2_crew = 2
| plane2_fatalities = 12
| plane2_survivors = 0
}}
On the evening of February 1, 1991, '''USAir Flight 1493''', a [[Boeing 737|Boeing 737-300]], collided with '''SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569''', a [[Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner]] turboprop aircraft, upon landing at [[Los Angeles International Airport]] (LAX).<ref name="ASN USA1493">{{Cite web|url=https://www.asndata.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19910201-0|title=ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 737-3B7 N388US Los Angeles International Airport, CA (LAX)|last=Ranter|first=Harro|website=www.aviation-safety.net|access-date=March 29, 2020|archive-date=September 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920071701/https://www.asndata.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19910201-0|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="SKW5569">{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident Swearingen SA227-AC Metro III N683AV Los Angeles International Airport, CA (LAX)|url=https://www.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19910201-1|access-date=March 29, 2020|website=www.aviation-safety.net|publisher=Aviation Safety Network}}</ref> As Flight 1493 was on [[final approach (aviation)|final approach]], the [[local controller]] was distracted, though air traffic was not heavy at LAX, by a series of abnormalities, including a misplaced [[flight progress strip]] and an aircraft that had inadvertently switched off the tower frequency. The [[SkyWest]] flight was told to taxi into takeoff position, while the [[USAir]] flight was landing on the same [[runway]].▼
Upon landing, the 737 collided with the smaller [[turboprop]] Metroliner, which was crushed beneath the larger USAir jet as it continued down the runway, caught fire, and veered into an airport fire station. Rescue workers arrived in minutes and began to evacuate the 737, but because of the intense fire, three of the 737's six exits were unusable, including both front exits; front passengers could only use one of the two [[overwing exits]], causing a bottleneck. All 12 people aboard the smaller plane were killed, along with an eventual total of 23 of the 89 occupants of the 737, with most deaths on the 737 caused by [[asphyxiation]] in the fire. ▼
▲On the evening of February 1, 1991, '''USAir Flight 1493''', a [[Boeing 737|Boeing 737-300]], collided with '''SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569''', a [[Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner]] turboprop aircraft, upon landing at [[Los Angeles International Airport]] (LAX).<ref name="ASN USA1493">{{Cite web|url=https://www.asndata.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19910201-0|title=ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 737-3B7 N388US Los Angeles International Airport, CA (LAX)|last=Ranter|first=Harro|website=www.aviation-safety.net|access-date=March 29, 2020|archive-date=September 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920071701/https://www.asndata.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19910201-0|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="SKW5569">{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident Swearingen SA227-AC Metro III N683AV Los Angeles International Airport, CA (LAX)|url=https://www.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19910201-1|access-date=March 29, 2020|website=www.aviation-safety.net|publisher=Aviation Safety Network}}</ref> As Flight 1493 was on [[final approach (aviation)|final approach]], the [[local controller]] was distracted, though air traffic was not heavy at LAX, by a series of abnormalities, including a misplaced [[flight progress strip]] and an aircraft that had inadvertently switched off the tower frequency. The SkyWest flight was told to taxi into takeoff position, while the USAir flight was landing on the same [[runway]].
▲Upon landing, the 737 collided with the smaller turboprop Metroliner, which was crushed beneath the larger USAir jet as it continued down the runway, caught fire, and veered into an airport fire station. Rescue workers arrived in minutes and began to evacuate the 737, but because of the intense fire, three of the 737's six exits were unusable, including both front exits; front passengers could only use one of the two [[overwing exits]], causing a bottleneck. All 12 people aboard the smaller plane were killed, along with an eventual total of 23 of the 89 occupants of the 737, with most deaths on the 737 caused by [[asphyxiation]] in the fire.
The [[National Transportation Safety Board]] (NTSB) found that the probable cause of the accident was the procedures in use at the LAX control tower, which provided inadequate redundancy, leading to a loss of [[situational awareness]] by the local controller, and inadequate oversight by the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] (FAA) for failing to supervise the control tower managers.<ref name="AAR91-08" />{{Rp|vi,76}} The crash led directly to the NTSB's recommendation of using different runways for takeoffs and landings at LAX.
== Background ==
=== Aircraft and crew ===▼
▲===Aircraft and crew===
[[USAir]] Flight 1493 was a scheduled service from [[Syracuse, New York]], making stops at [[Washington, DC]], [[Columbus, Ohio]], and LAX, before continuing to San Francisco.<ref name="AAR91-08">{{cite book |url=https://ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR9108.pdf |title=Aviation 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 |date=October 22, 1991 |publisher=[[National Transportation Safety Board]] |id=NTSB/AAR-91/08 |accessdate=January 21, 2016}} - [https://libraryonline.erau.edu/online-full-text/ntsb/aircraft-accident-reports/AAR91-08.pdf Copy at] [[Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University]].</ref>{{rp|1}} On February 1, 1991, Flight 1493 was operated using a [[Boeing 737|Boeing 737-300]] ([[Aircraft registration|registration]] {{Airreg|N|388US}}); after a crew change in Washington, DC,<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|1}} it was under the command of [[pilot in command|Captain]] Colin Franklin Shaw (48), a highly experienced pilot with around 16,300 total flight hours (including more than 4,300 hours on the Boeing 737), and [[copilot|First Officer]] David T. Kelly (32), who had about 4,300 total flight hours, with 982 hours on the Boeing 737.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|82}} Flying into LAX, the aircraft had 89 people on board (83 passengers, four flight attendants, and the two pilots).{{efn|name="count discrepancy footnote"|The executive summary of the NTSB report describes "89 passengers, 4 flight attendants, and 2 flight crewmembers" aboard Flight 1493.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|1}} However, this does not match the contents of the report. The body of the report describes a total of "89 persons aboard the B-737".<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|30}} In addition, the report's section on injuries to persons describes a total of 101 persons involved in the accident, including 12 aboard the Metroliner and 89 aboard the Boeing 737.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|8}} In addition, shortly after the accident, USAir officials reported to the press that 83 passengers and 6 flight crew were on board Flight 1493.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/03/us/pilots-dead-many-missing-in-fiery-los-angeles-crash.html |title=Pilots Dead, Many Missing In Fiery Los Angeles Crash |last=Reinhold |first=Robert |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=February 3, 1991 |access-date=March 25, 2016 |quote=Of the 83 passengers and 6 crew members aboard USAir Flight 1493, on the way from Columbus, Ohio, to Los Angeles, 19 were still unaccounted for this afternoon, said airline officials.}}</ref>}}
On February 1, 1991, SkyWest Airlines Flight 5569 was operated using a twin-engined Fairchild Metroliner (registration {{Airreg|N|683AV}}). The flight was scheduled to depart LAX on the final leg of a multicity schedule, and was bound for [[Palmdale, California]], with 10 passengers and two pilots aboard.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|1}} The aircraft did not carry a cockpit voice recorder (CVR) or a flight data recorder (FDR), as it was not required to do so at the time.<ref name="AAR91-08" />{{rp|20–21}} Both of Flight 5569's pilots had significant experience; Captain Andrew Lucas (32), had roughly 8,800 flight hours (with 2,101 of them on the Metroliner), and First Officer Frank Prentice (45), had over 8,000 flight hours, including 1,363 hours on the Metroliner.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|83}}
=== Airport ===
LAX has four [[parallel (geometry)|parallel]] runways, with the two runways and associated taxiways north of the [[airport terminal|terminal]] called the North Complex.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|13}} Aircraft that landed on the outer runway – 24R – would cross the inner runway – 24L – in order to reach the terminal.{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}
=== Air traffic control ===
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== Accident details ==
=== Flight ===▼
▲===Flight===
[[File:USAir Flight 1493 traffic movements.svg|thumb|right|Diagram showing movement of the aircraft involved in the accident]]
Skywest 5569 was cleared by ATC Wascher in the LAX tower to taxi to Runway 24L, moving from gate 32 to the runway via taxiways Kilo, 48, Tango, and 45.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|5}}{{efn|name="taxiway footnote"|Taxiway names Kilo, 48, Tango, and 45 were in use at the time of the accident; these taxiways were redesignated as Charlie, Sierra, Delta, and Delta10 after 1991.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}}}} The plane was briefly not visible from the tower on taxiway 48 between Kilo and Tango in the area known as "no man's land".{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}▼
▲Skywest 5569 was cleared by ATC Wascher in the LAX tower to taxi to Runway 24L, moving from gate 32 to the runway via taxiways Kilo, 48, Tango, and 45.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|5}}{{efn|name="taxiway footnote"|Taxiway names Kilo, 48, Tango, and 45 were in use at the time of the accident; these taxiways were redesignated as Charlie, Sierra, Delta, and Delta10 after 1991.{{citation needed|date=January 2016}}}} The plane was briefly not visible from the tower on taxiway 48 between Kilo and Tango in the area known as "no man's land".{{Citation needed|date=November 2023}}
Immediately prior to SkyWest 5569 reaching runway 24L, a [[Wings West Airlines|Wings West]] aircraft had landed on 24R and was awaiting permission to cross 24L and taxi to the terminal. The local controller attempted to contact the Wings West aircraft, but the crew had changed frequencies and did not answer, distracting Wascher as she attempted to reestablish communications.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|5}} Shortly after 6 PM local time, as USAir 1493 was on final approach to LAX, the SkyWest Metroliner was cleared by the local controller to taxi into position and hold on Runway 24L at the intersection of taxiway 45, some {{convert|2200|ft|m}} up from the runway threshold.<ref name=airdisastercom>Kilroy, Chris. {{usurped|[https://web.archive.org/web/20091011065232/http://www.airdisaster.com/special/special-us1493.shtml AirDisaster.Com: Special Report: USAir Flight 1493]}}. Retrieved on December 16, 2009.</ref> After four attempts by the local controller, the Wings West aircraft finally responded to the tower and apologized for switching frequencies. Wascher then cleared the USAir flight to land on 24L, even though the SkyWest Metroliner was still holding in takeoff position on the runway:
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|18:06:55
| style="background:#E8F6F3;" |Los Angeles Tower
| style="background:#E8F6F3;" |SouthwestSkyWest seven twenty five taxi into position and hold runway two four left.
|}
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|-
|18:06:58
| style="background:#E8F6F3;" |SouthwestSkyWest Airlines 725
| style="background:#E8F6F3;" |Seven twenty five position and hold two four left.
|-
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The USAir plane slammed into the Metroliner, crushing it beneath its fuselage. The 737 proceeded to skid down the runway, then veered off the left side and came to rest on the far side of the taxiway against a closed fire station building, where it eventually caught fire.<ref name="airdisastercom" /> Large debris from the Metroliner – including its tail, wings, and right engine – were found on the runway and between the runway and the abandoned fire station.
[[File:USAir Flight1493 wreckage.jpg|alt=The wreckage of N388US from an overhead view|thumb|The wreckage of N388US from an overhead view]]
The accident was witnessed from a plane carrying the [[Vancouver Canucks]], who were arriving for a [[National Hockey League]] game against the [[Los Angeles Kings]].<ref name="canucks">{{cite news |title=Flights, Fate and Football: Remembering Flight 180 |publisher=Canadian Football League |url=https://www.cfl.ca/article/flights__fate_and_football__remembering_flight_180 |last=Beamish |first=Mike |date=December 9, 2006 |accessdate=January 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923222522/http://www.cfl.ca/article/flights__fate_and_football__remembering_flight_180 |archive-date=September 23, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
The captain of that charter aircraft, having just landed, powered up the engines to get away from the fireball of the accident.<ref name="canucks"/> The team was unsure if the USAir 737 was going to stop before it collided with their plane.<ref name="latimescancuks">{{cite news |url=httphttps://articleswww.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-04/sports/-sp-447_1_vancouver447-canucksstory.html |title=Canucks Had Close-Up View of Fatal Airline Crash at LAX |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |last=Springer |first=Steve |date=February 4, 1991 |accessdateaccess-date=January 21, 2016}}</ref> The Canucks were shaken by the experience and lost to the Kings by a score of 9–1, their worst loss of the [[1990–91 Vancouver Canucks season|1990–91]] season.<ref name="canucks"/>
=== Fatalities and injuries ===
[[Image:USAir1493SeatingChart.svg|thumb|right|Seating chart of US Airways Flight 1493 from the NTSB, revealing locations of passengers, lack of injury, the severity of injuries, and deaths]]
The 35 dead included all 12 people (10 passengers and both crew members) on SkyWest 5569, and 23 of the 89 aboard the USAir 1493 (21 passengers, Captain Shaw, and Lead flight attendant Deanna Bethea ). Two of the USAir fatalities were passengers who initially survived the crash, but died from burn injuries three and 31 days after the crash.{{efn|name="fatality footnote"|Although the NTSB's final report only lists 22 "fatal" injuries aboard USAir 1493, a total of 23 people died as a result of the crash. One fatality, a passenger who initially survived the crash but died 31 days later due to burn injuries, was officially recorded by the NTSB as a "serious" injury. In its final report, the NTSB explained that at the time, 49 CFR 830.2 defined "fatal injury" as an injury that results in death within 3 days of an accident. In accordance with regulation, the NTSB counted this deceased passenger among the 12 "serious" injuries.<ref name=AAR91-08/>{{rp|8}} The regulation has since been revised, and {{as of|2016|October|lc=y}}, any injury resulting in death within 30 days is now deemed a "fatal injury".<ref>{{CodeFedReg|49|830|2}}</ref>}}
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Shaw was found to have traces of [[phenobarbital]] in his blood. The [[Federal Aviation Administration]] prohibits use of the [[sedative]] before flying. The drug was prescribed for [[irritable bowel syndrome]] by Shaw's physicians, who said they had warned him not to use the medication while flying.<ref name=ap/>
== Investigation ==
First Officer David Kelly, who was flying the USAir 1493 during the accident leg, reported that he did not see SkyWest 5569 until he lowered the nose of his aircraft onto the runway after landing. Kelly also said that he applied the brakes, but did not have enough time for evasive action. Statements made by passengers who survived the crash were consistent with this testimony.<ref name="AAR91-08" />{{rp|7}}<ref name=laxrunway>[http://www.users.on.net/~gavin_n/Aviation/lax_coll.html "LAX Runway Collision"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303171507/http://www.users.on.net/~gavin_n/Aviation/lax_coll.html |date=March 3, 2016 }}. Retrieved on December 16, 2009.</ref>{{Better source needed|date=December 2017}}
Local controller Wascher, who cleared both aircraft to use the same runway, testified before the NTSB and accepted blame for causing the crash. She said she originally thought the landing USAir plane had been hit by a bomb, then "realized something went wrong... I went to the supervisor and I said, 'I think this (the SkyWest plane) is what USAir hit.'" She testified that rooftop lights in her line of sight caused glare in the tower, making seeing small planes difficult at the intersection where the SkyWest plane was positioned. Just before the accident, she confused the SkyWest plane with another commuter airliner that was on a taxiway near the end of the runway. Making matters more difficult, the ground radar at LAX was not working on the day of the accident.<ref name=controller>{{cite news |last1=Malnic |first1=Eric |last2=Connell |first2=Rich |url=httphttps://articleswww.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-05-08/news/-mn-1325_1_runway1325-collisionstory.html |title=Controller Says Her Error Caused Runway Collision |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=May 8, 1991 |accessdateaccess-date=January 21, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Stein|first=Mark|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-02-09-mn-656-story.html|title=Controller Was Stricken by Grief, Tears After Crash : Disaster: Co-workers spent hours after the accident counseling her and hid her from publicity for days.|date=February 9, 1991|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=March 29, 2020}}</ref>
The NTSB's investigation of the crash revealed that the cockpit crew of the landing USAir jet could not see the commuter plane, which blended in with other airport lights.<ref name=towertapes>{{cite news |url=http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1991-03-26/news/1991085042_1_skywest-plane-down-the-runway |title=FAA releases tower tapes of the crash on L.A. runway |newspaper=[[The Baltimore Sun]] |last=Carroll |first=James R. |date=March 26, 1991 |accessdate=January 21, 2016 |archive-date=December 23, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223061057/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1991-03-26/news/1991085042_1_skywest-plane-down-the-runway |url-status=dead }}</ref> The NTSB cited LAX's procedures which placed much of the responsibility for runways on the local controllers, which directly led to the loss of situational awareness by the local controller. The NTSB also noted that during the previous performance review, a supervisor had noted four deficiencies in the local controller who ultimately worked the accident aircraft. These deficiencies were not addressed prior to the accident, and two of the deficiencies were apparent in the accident sequence—her loss of situational awareness and aircraft misidentification.<ref name="AAR91-08" />
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Before this accident, the FAA issued a ruling that required airlines to upgrade the flammability standards of materials on board, but the USAir plane had been built before the effective date of those requirements and had not yet been modernized. It was scheduled to be upgraded within the next year. By 2009, all aircraft operating in the United States were compliant.<ref name=time>{{cite news |url=http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1881758,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228050315/http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1881758,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 28, 2009 |title=Surviving Crashes: How Airlines Prepare for the Worst |newspaper=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |last=Harrell |first=Eben |date=February 26, 2009 |accessdate=January 21, 2016}}</ref>
Air traffic controller Wascher, who bore the immediate responsibility for the crash, was adjudged to have made an error in adverse circumstances that any air traffic controller could have made and was not prosecuted or fired. She declined an offer to return to air traffic control and took a desk job at the FAA's western regional office.<ref>{{cite webCn|url=https://admiralcloudberg.medium.com/cleared-to-collide-the-crash-of-usair-flight-1493-and-skywest-flight-5569-or-the-los-angeles-5d24ab5fec46|access-date=May 2024-01-02|date=2022-11-12|title=Cleared to Collide: The crash of USAir flight 1493 and SkyWest flight 5569, or the Los Angeles Runway Disaster|first=Kyra|last=Dempsey|publisher=Admiral Cloudberg}}</ref>
== Dramatization ==
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* [[2024 Haneda Airport runway collision]] – a 2024 fatal runway incursion on runway 16L/34R at Haneda Airport involving an [[Airbus A350|A350]] and a coast guard [[De Havilland Canada Dash 8|DHC-8]]
== Notes ==
{{notelist}}
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{{Aviation incidents and accidents in 1991}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in the 1990s}}
[[Category:1991 in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1991]]