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CHI88FA233

1988-09-09 · MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport MSP

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

FAILURE OF THE CAPTAIN TO FOLLOW COMPANY PUSHBACK PROCEDURES AND NOT GETTING A RELEASE BEFORE STARTING TO TAXI.

Factual narrative

AFTER PUSHBACK FROM THE JETWAY, THE AIRPLANE HIT A GROUND HANDLING VEHICLE (TUG) AS THE FLT CREW STARTED TO TAXI FOR TAKEOFF. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT AFTER PUSHBACK, THE GROUND CREW INFORMED THE FLT CREW (VIA INTERCOM) THAT THE BYPASS PIN WAS REMOVED & THE STEERING WAS CONNECTED. THE GROUND CREWMAN ENDED THE CONVERSTATION BY STATING 'YOU GENTLEMEN HAVE A NICE TRIP, SEE YOU ANOTHER DAY.' THE INTERCOM WAS DISCONNECTED & THE CAPTAIN STARTED TO TAXI, BEFORE RECEIVING A VISUAL SIGNAL FROM THE GROUND CREW & BEFORE THE TUG WAS REMOVED FROM THE AIRPLANE'S PATH. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE HIT THE TOP OF THE TUG & DAMAGED THE LOWER RIGHT PART OF THE FORWARD FUSELAGE (BELOW THE COCKPIT WINDOWS). Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1988_CHI88FA233.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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