History of Flight
On September 25, 2024, about 1526 central daylight time, Envoy Airlines flight 3936, an Embraer 170-100 LR, N772MR, landed on runway 10L at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) after being cleared for a visual approach to runway 10C. The flight, a regularly scheduled passenger service under 14 CFR Part 121, originated from Norfolk International Airport (ORF), Virginia, and carried 68 occupants, none of whom were injured. The airplane was not damaged.
Before departure, the flight crew planned for the ILS runway 27R via the WATSON4 RNAV arrival based on current weather at ORD. After obtaining ATIS information indicating runway 9L, ATC assigned the ESSPO5 arrival, which was programmed and briefed. The crew discussed expected runways and concluded they would likely be assigned runway 10R, but were later assigned runway 10C by the approach controller.
The captain, serving as pilot monitoring, briefed the approach and programmed the FMC with the ILS approach to runway 10C to back up the visual approach. They were not receiving the ILS identifier; the captain attempted troubleshooting by reloading the approach and manually tuning the frequency but could not resolve the issue, so they proceeded visually.
The captain contacted the ATCT controller, stating they were on a visual approach to runway 10C, and was cleared to land. However, the airplane was aligned with and landed on runway 10L. After touchdown, the airplane turned left to exit the runway.
Personnel Information
The captain, aged 54, held an ATP certificate with type ratings on the CL-65, ERJ-170, and ERJ-190, and an FAA first-class medical certificate dated August 19, 2024, with a corrective lenses limitation. He reported wearing his lenses during the incident. Hired by Envoy Airlines on April 13, 2023, he had accumulated about 7,112 total flight hours, including about 585 hours in the ERJ 170/175.
The first officer, aged 46, held an ATP certificate with type ratings on the ERJ-170 and ERJ-190, and a flight instructor certificate. He held an FAA first-class medical certificate dated July 29, 2024, with no limitations. Hired on April 11, 2024, he had about 1,619 total flight hours, with about 76 hours in the ERJ 170/175.
The captain stated he had landed on runway 10C at ORD only a handful of times, most recently about two weeks prior. The first officer indicated it was his second time operating into ORD since employment. Both crew members reported that this pairing was their first time flying together.
Aircraft Information
The flight was operated by Envoy Air Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines Group, doing business as American Eagle. The Honeywell Pilots Guide Rev 8 described navigation tuning procedures, including autotune and preview mode behaviors for ILS frequency selection.
Air Traffic Control
A review of ATC communications revealed that after checking in with ORD approach control, flight 3936 was told to expect runway 10C. About six minutes later, the flight was instructed to turn to a 060° heading and intercept the 10C localizer. The crew initially read back a heading of 090°, but the controller corrected them and reissued the 060° heading, which was then read back correctly. About 30 seconds later, the flight was instructed to maintain 170 knots to RAYYY and contact the tower, with correct readbacks.
The FAA MOR reported that the ATCT controller noticed the runway alignment error and coordinated with the runway 10L controller to allow the landing on the incorrect runway, as no traffic conflicts were noted. At no time was the flight notified of the alignment error. The Air Traffic Manager reported that traffic volume was "light with routine complexity."
FAA Order JO 7110.65AA specifies that when a controller becomes aware an aircraft is aligned with the wrong surface, they should inform the pilot and issue instructions or clearances. In this incident, such notification was not provided.
Flight Recorders
The flight data recorder (FDR) data revealed that while flying a heading to intercept the ILS 10C, the Nav 1 radio was correctly tuned to 108.95 MHz (ILS 10C localizer) for four seconds, during which the localizer and glideslope displays indicated the correct course was to the right and above. Subsequently, the Nav 1 frequency was changed to 108.4 MHz and Nav 2 to 113.0 MHz for the remainder of the flight.
The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) was overwritten after multiple flights following the incident, as it was not quarantined before further use.
Tests and Research
The source mentioned cognitive phenomena, specifically planned continuation bias, described as a psychological tendency to resist deviation from a planned course of action despite changing circumstances. This information is presented as context from the investigation but does not constitute a stated cause.