Aircraft Accident Report
Runway Departure During Attempted Takeoff
Tower Air Flight 41
Boeing 747-136, N605FF
JFK International Airport, New York
December 20, 1995
Aircraft Accident Report
Runway Departure During Attempted Takeoff
Tower Air Flight 41
Boeing 747-136, N605FF
JFK International Airport, New York
December 20, 1995
NTSB Number AAR-96/04
NTIS Number PB96-910404
PDF Document (448K)
Abstract: This report explains the runway departure during
attempted takeoff of Tower Air flight 41, N605FF, a Boeing 747-136 at John
F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, on December 20, 1995. The safety
issues discussed in this report include the adequacy of Boeing and air
carrier procedures for B-747 operations on slippery runways; adequacy of
flight simulators for training B-747 pilots in slippery runway operations;
security of galley equipment installed on transport category aircraft;
role of communications among flight attendants and between the cabin crew
and the flightcrew; adequacy of Tower Air galley security training; compliance
of Tower Air’s maintenance department with its established procedures;
failure of the FDR system to function during the accident; adequacy of
the Tower Air operational management structure; adequacy of FAA surveillance
and workload imposed on POIs; adequacy of runway friction measurement requirements,
including correlation of runway friction measurements with aircraft braking
and ground handling performance. Safety recommendations concerning these
issues were made to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Tower
Air, Inc.