1990 Wayne County Airport runway collision

The Wayne County Airport runway collision involved the collision of two Northwest Airlines aircraft at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport on December 3, 1990. It occurred when Flight 1482, a scheduled Douglas DC-9 operating from Detroit to Pittsburgh International Airport, was mistakenly taxed on an active runway in heavy fog and struck by a departing Boeing 727 operating as Flight 299 to Memphis International Airport.

Northwest Airlines
Flight 1482 · Flight 299

Wreckage of N3313L.
Accident
Date	December 3, 1990 (1990-12-03)
Summary	Runway incursion in fog due to pilot error on the DC-9
Site	Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Michigan 42°12′45″N 83°21′12″W
Total fatalities	8
Total injuries	10
Total survivors	190
First aircraft
A Northwest Airlines Douglas DC-9-14, similar to the one involved.
Type	McDonnell Douglas DC-9-14
Operator	Northwest Airlines
Registration	N3313L
Flight origin	Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Michigan
Destination	Pittsburgh International Airport
Occupants	44
Passengers	40
Crew	4
Fatalities	8
Injuries	10
Survivors	36
Second aircraft
The accident aircraft in December 1993 after repair and return to service
Type	Boeing 727-251-Adv
Operator	Northwest Airlines
Registration	N278US
Flight origin	Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Michigan
Destination	Memphis International Airport, Tennessee
Occupants	154
Passengers	146
Crew	8
Fatalities	0
Injuries	0
Survivors	154

Of the surviving passengers, the NTSB stated that 10 received serious injuries and 23 received minor or no injuries. The three surviving crew members received minor or no injuries

Aircraft

The Douglas DC-9 operating Flight 1482 was registered N3313L; It was built in 1966 and had a total of 62,253 hours of operation. The DC-9 was delivered new to Delta before being sold to predecessor Northwest Southern Airways in 1973. It was 24 years old at the time of the accident.

The Boeing 727 that operated Flight 299 was registered as N278US and had been purchased by Northwest in 1975. It had 37,310 hours of operation. The aircraft was repaired and flew with Northwest until 1995. Aircraft N278US was later sold to Kitty Hawk Aircargo and scrapped in 2011 after 36 years of service.