NTSB Releases New Details in Airport Ramp Fatality

An airline ramp worker was killed when she was pulled into an Embraer 170 engine.

Tuesday, January 24, 2023 at 01:52 PM ET

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The NTSB released its preliminary report on the fatal accident involving an airline ramp worker and an Embraer 170 at Montgomery Regional Airport (KMGM) in Alabama last month. [Credit: Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

An airline ramp worker was fatally pulled into a still-operating engine of an Embraer 170 at Montgomery Regional Airport on New Year's Eve.
The aircraft's inoperative auxiliary power unit (APU) necessitated leaving engines running for a cool-down period, and ground crews were briefed multiple times not to approach the aircraft until engines were off and beacon lights extinguished.
Despite these warnings and explicit safety protocols, surveillance video showed the worker walking directly into the left engine's ingestion zone while it was still spooling down.

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An airline ramp worker was killed at an Alabama airport New Year’s Eve when she was pulled into a still-operating engine of an Embraer 170 that was cooling down, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report on the fatal accident released Monday.

The accident at Montgomery Regional Airport (KMGM) happened in daylight on New Year’s Eve when the aircraft, which was flying for American Airlines’ regional American Eagle, was parked at a gate, NTSB said.