NTSB: Flight Crew at Fault in 2014 PHL Accident

Nose gear collapsed on US Airways fight. The NTSB released video of the incident.

This article has been updated to include NTSB video of the 2014 accident.

The March 2014 accident where a US Airways plane’s nose gear collapsed at Philadelphia International Airport was the result of errors by the flight crew, the National Transportation Safety Board has ruled.

USA Today reports: “This investigation ultimately reveals a crew that made decisions which resulted in minor injuries to passengers and substantial damage to what was otherwise a perfectly sound plane,” board member Earl Weener said in a statement accompanying the board’s findings.

The report revealed a co-pilot entered incorrect information in the plane’s flight computer, prompting an audio alarm in the cockpit — and confusing the crew, since the particular alarm was designed for landings, not takeoffs. The captain aborted the takeoff — with the result the plane’s tail smacked the runway, and the nose gear collapsed when it hit the ground.

Two of the 154 people aboard sustained minor injuries. The NTSB concluded that the captain’s decision to abort takeoff — after the plane had been airborne for about four seconds — was the primary cause of the incident.

American Airlines, which merged with US Airways, told ABC News that both pilots had not flown since the incident.

Two videos of the incident were released with the NTSB’s findings: