Accident Overview
On July 26, 2002, at approximately 0537 eastern daylight time, Federal Express Flight 1478, a Boeing 727-232F registered as N497FE, was on a scheduled cargo flight from Memphis International Airport, Tennessee, to Tallahassee Regional Airport (TLH) in Florida. The flight operated under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121. During the approach to runway 9, the aircraft struck trees on the short final approach and came to rest short of the runway. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and the flight operated on an instrument flight rules flight plan.
Crew Injuries and Aircraft Damage
The captain, first officer, and flight engineer sustained serious injuries. The airplane was destroyed by the impact and subsequent fire.
Probable Cause
The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the accident was the captain's and first officer's failure to establish and maintain a proper glidepath during the night visual approach to landing. Contributing to the accident were fatigue experienced by the captain and first officer, their failure to adhere to company flight procedures, the captain's and flight engineer's failure to monitor the approach, and the first officer's color vision deficiency.