American Airlines Flight 1340 Crash at O'Hare: Causes & Analysis
This paper examines the February 9, 1998 crash landing of American Airlines Flight 1340, a Boeing 727 operating from Kansas City to Chicago O'Hare International Airport. It traces the sequence of events from departure through the final instrument approach, describes the crash landing and the substantial damage sustained by the aircraft, and documents the aftermath, including emergency evacuation, passenger injuries, and subsequent litigation. Drawing on the National Transportation Safety Board's accident brief, the paper analyzes both the probable cause—flight crew failure to maintain proper pitch attitude—and a contributing cause rooted in an uncorrected autopilot desensitization setting dating to a procedural change made in the early 1980s.
- Introduction: Overview of the February 1998 accident
- Sequence of Events Leading to the Crash: Chronological timeline from departure to impact
- The Crash Landing and Damage to the Aircraft: Touchdown short of runway and hull loss
- Aftermath of the Crash: Evacuation, injuries, and passenger lawsuit
- Probable Causes of the Crash: NTSB findings on crew error and autopilot flaw
- Conclusion: Summary of dual causes and lessons
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What makes this paper effective
- The chronological event timeline gives readers a precise, easily followed account of how the accident unfolded, grounding abstract aviation concepts in specific times and altitudes.
- The paper cleanly separates factual description (the crash and its damage) from causal analysis (the NTSB findings), making the argument logical and easy to follow.
- Technical terms—ILS, CAT II approach, glideslope, autopilot desensitization—are defined either inline or in footnotes, making a specialized topic accessible to a general academic audience.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates effective use of a single authoritative primary source (the NTSB Aircraft Accident Brief) to reconstruct both a factual narrative and a causal argument. By distinguishing between the "probable cause" and the "contributing cause" as defined by the NTSB, the author shows how to handle multi-factor causation without conflating independent categories of evidence.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a brief contextual introduction before moving into a bulleted chronological timeline of the approach and impact. Subsequent sections cover physical damage, evacuation and litigation, and finally the NTSB's two-part causal finding. This funnel structure—from events to consequences to causes—mirrors standard accident-investigation reporting and gives the paper a professional, report-style coherence appropriate for an undergraduate aviation or transportation studies course.
Introduction
An American Airlines Boeing 727 operating as Flight 1340 from Kansas City to Chicago met with an accident on February 9, 1998 (0954 central standard time), while landing at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD). Although there were no fatalities, 22 passengers and 1 flight attendant—out of the 116 passengers, 3 flight crewmembers, and 3 flight attendants on board—received minor injuries, and the airplane was substantially damaged. This paper traces the sequence of events leading to the accident, describes the crash and its aftermath, and analyzes its probable causes.
References
"Aircraft Accident Brief." (1998). National Transportation Safety Board. Retrieved October 26, 2005, from http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/2001/AAB0101.pdf
"Airline Crashes." (2005). Peterson & Associates, P.C. Retrieved October 26, 2005, from http://www.petersonlawfirm.com/Info.Airplane-Crashes.html
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