Collision Between Northwest Airlines Flights 1482 and 299 at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (N3313L)

Accident Overview and Casualties On December 3, 1990, at 1345 Eastern Standard Time, Northwest Airlines Flight 1482, a DC-9 with registration N3313L, and Northwest Airlines Flight 299, a Boeing 727 with registration N278US, collided near the intersection of runway 09/27 and 03C/21C at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in Michigan. The collision occurred in dense fog. At the time, the Boeing 727 was on its takeoff roll, and the DC-9 had just taxied onto the active runway. The Boeing 727 sustained substantial damage, while the DC-9 was destroyed. Seven of the 40 passengers and one crew member aboard the DC-9 received fatal injuries. None of the 146 passengers and eight crew members aboard the Boeing 727 were injured. ## Probable Cause and Contributing Factors The official investigation found that the accident was caused by a lack of proper crew coordination, including a virtual reversal of roles by the DC-9 pilots. This led to their failure to stop taxiing and alert the ground controller of their positional uncertainty in a timely manner before and after intruding onto the active runway. Contributing to the cause of the accident were deficiencies in air traffic control services provided by Detroit tower. These included the failure of ground control to take timely action to alert the local controller to a possible runway incursion, inadequate visibility observation, failure to use progressive taxi instructions in low-visibility conditions, and issuance of inappropriate and confusing taxi instructions. These issues were compounded by inadequate backup supervision for the level of experience of the staff on duty. Additional contributing factors included deficiencies in surface markings, signage, and lighting at the airport, and the failure of FAA surveillance to detect or correct any of these deficiencies. The investigation also cited the failure of Northwest Airlines to provide adequate cockpit resource management training to line aircrews. ## Factors Affecting Injuries and Fatalities The inoperability of the DC-9's internal tailcone release mechanism contributed to the fatalities. The failure of the DC-9 crew to properly execute the passenger evacuation contributed to the number and severity of injuries.