Comair 5191: The Wrong-Runway Takeoff That Ended in a Fatal Crash, 2006

The NTSB concluded that the probable cause was the flight crew's failure to use available cues and aids to identify the airplane's position on the airport surface and verify that the airplane was on the assigned runway before takeoff. Contributing factors included the crew's nonpertinent conversation and the airport's lack, at the time, of a requirement for specific clearance before crossing a runway.

At about 6:06:35 a.m. EDT, Flight 5191 ran beyond the end of Runway 26, struck the airport perimeter fence and continued into trees and terrain. The aircraft was destroyed. Forty-nine of the 50 people aboard died; the first officer survived with serious injuries.

The NTSB's factual record shows that the crew received several cues about the intended runway but did not adequately determine the aircraft's position before takeoff. The cockpit voice recorder also documented conversation unrelated to the immediate operation. The absence of runway lighting on Runway 26 was another cue that the crew noticed during the takeoff sequence.

The crew had received the airport's ATIS information and departure clearance identifying Runway 22. The taxi route required the aircraft to cross Runway 26. During taxi, however, the crew stopped at Runway 26 and subsequently began the takeoff from it without recognizing the runway mismatch.

Comair Flight 5191, operating as a Canadair Regional Jet, was assigned Runway 22 for departure from Blue Grass Airport in Lexington, Kentucky, on August 27, 2006. Instead, the aircraft entered Runway 26, a shorter runway that was not the assigned departure runway, and began its takeoff roll.

Accident Facts

Timeline

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