Boeing 777-300 B-16710

Summary

On 16 August 2008 at about 08:50 local time, a Boeing 777-300 registered B-16710, operated by Eva Air, was involved in an accident near San Francisco, California, United States. 312 people were on board. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

16 August 2008 at 08:50

Classification

Accident

Location

San Francisco, California, United States

Nearest airport

San Francisco International (SFO)

Coordinates

37.6189, -122.3747

Aircraft

Boeing 777-300

Registration

B-16710

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Eva Air

Operating rule

Part 129: Foreign

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Francisco → Taipei

Aircraft damage

Not recorded

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

SEA08LA182

Injuries not recorded.

The ground crewman's failure to follow the tow bar disconnect standard operating procedures.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The transport airplane had been pushed back from the gate and the engines were started. Ground personnel attempted to disconnect the tow bar but had difficulty. They instructed the flight crew to release the parking brake in order to reposition the nose gear. The mechanic attempted to disconnect the tow bar and when it finally disconnected, the airplane moved forward and he was pinned under the left nose gear. The ground crew management and airline personnel indicated that the ground crew personnel were not acting in accordance with established standard operating procedures which requires that the parking brake be set prior to removal of the tow bar.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.