Boeing 737 7H4 N772SW

Summary

On 17 April 2018 at about 15:03 local time, a Boeing 737 7H4 registered N772SW, operated by Southwest Airlines Co, was involved in an accident near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. 140 people were on board and one died, 8 were seriously injured, 125 had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

17 April 2018 at 15:03

Classification

Accident

Location

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Nearest airport

Philadelphia (KPHL)

Coordinates

39.8719, -75.2400

Aircraft

Boeing 737 7H4

Registration

N772SW

Category

Airplane

Year built

2000

Engines

2

Operator

Southwest Airlines Co

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

New York → Dallas

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DCA18MA142

1 person died.

A low-cycle fatigue crack in the dovetail of fan blade No. 13, which resulted in the fan blade separating in flight and impacting the engine fan case at a location that was critical to the structural integrity and performance of the fan cowl structure. This impact led to the in-flight separation of fan cowl components, including the inboard fan cowl aft latch keeper, which struck the fuselage near a cabin window and caused the window to depart from the airplane, the cabin to rapidly depressurize, and the passenger fatality.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The NTSB's full report is available at http://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Pages/AccidentReports.aspx. The Aircraft Accident Report number is NTSB/AAR-19/03. On April 17, 2018, about 1103 eastern daylight time, Southwest Airlines flight 1380, a Boeing 737-7H4, N772SW, experienced a left engine failure while climbing through flight level 320 en route to the flight's assigned cruise altitude. The flight had departed from LaGuardia Airport, Queens, New York, about 30 minutes earlier. As a result of the engine failure, the flight crew conducted an emergency descent and diverted to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Portions of the left engine inlet and fan cowl separated from the airplane, and fragments from the inlet and fan cowl struck the left wing, the left-side fuselage, and the left horizontal stabilizer. One fan cowl fragment impacted the left-side fuselage near a cabin window, and the window departed the airplane, which resulted in a rapid depressurization. The airplane landed safely at PHL about 17 minutes after the engine failure occurred. Of the 144 passengers and 5 crewmembers aboard the airplane, 1 passenger received fatal injuries, and 8 passengers received minor injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight was operating under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 with a destination of Dallas Love Field, Dallas, Texas. The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows: A low-cycle fatigue crack in the dovetail of fan blade No. 13, which resulted in the fan blade separating in flight and impacting the engine fan case at a location that was critical to the structural integrity and performance of the fan cowl structure. This impact led to the in-flight separation of fan cowl components, including the inboard fan cowl aft latch keeper, which struck the fuselage near a cabin window and caused the window to depart from the airplane, the cabin to rapidly depressurize, and the passenger fatality.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.