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Boeing 747 accidents and incidents

A chronological guide to 22 selected Boeing 747 accidents and incidents, with a detailed account and image for every entry.

Explore the aircraft, circumstances and investigation findings behind these selected cases, from Nairobi in 1974 to Bagram in 2013. The list includes accidents, deliberate attacks and non-fatal incidents.

Accidents and incidents, in date order

22 selected cases. Each account includes an image, sources and a link back to this list.

  1. Ken Fielding · Source · CC BY-SA 3.0

    Lufthansa 540

    Nairobi, Kenya Fatalities: 59

    Takeoff configuration and leading-edge devices.

    Read the full account

  2. Dutch National Archives / Anefo; photographer unknown · Source · CC0

    Tenerife: KLM 4805 and Pan Am 1736

    Tenerife, Canary Islands Fatalities: 583

    Runway collision in fog.

    Read the full account

  3. Illustrative aircraft photograph. Martin Harrison · Source · CC BY-SA 4.0

    El Al 747 decompression

    Over Belgrade, Yugoslavia Fatalities: 1

    Loss of cabin pressure.

    Read the full account

  4. Lewis Grant · Source · CC BY 2.0

    Air India 855

    Off Mumbai, India Fatalities: 213

    Instrument disagreement and loss of control.

    Read the full account

  5. Boeing-747.com · CC BY 4.0

    Korean Air Lines 015

    Seoul, South Korea Fatalities: 14–15 reported

    Landing short of the runway.

    Read the full account

  6. G B_NZ · Source · CC BY-SA 2.0

    British Airways 9

    Near Java, Indonesia Fatalities: 0

    Volcanic ash and four-engine flameout.

    Read the full account

  7. Kambui · Source · CC BY 2.0

    Pan Am 830

    Pacific Ocean, near Hawaii Fatalities: 1

    Cabin bombing; emergency landing.

    Read the full account

  8. mike hoffmann · Source · CC0

    Korean Air Lines 007

    Near Sakhalin, Soviet Union Fatalities: 269

    Navigation deviation and military shootdown.

    Read the full account

  9. NTSB · Source · Public domain

    China Airlines 006

    Pacific Ocean Fatalities: 0

    Loss of control; recovery and landing.

    Read the full account

  10. Ian Kirby · Source · CC BY-SA 3.0

    Air India 182

    Atlantic Ocean, off Ireland Fatalities: 329

    Bombing and in-flight breakup.

    Read the full account

  11. JTSB · Source · CC BY 4.0

    Japan Air Lines 123

    Mount Osutaka, Japan Fatalities: 520

    Pressure bulkhead failure after an improper repair.

    Read the full account

  12. Leslie Snelleman · Source · CC BY-SA 4.0

    Pan Am 73

    Karachi, Pakistan Fatalities: 20

    Hijacking on the ground.

    Read the full account

  13. Air Accident Investigation Branch · Source · OGL 2

    Pan Am 103, Lockerbie

    Lockerbie, Scotland Fatalities: 270

    Bombing and in-flight breakup.

    Read the full account

  14. Jos Wiersema; version modified by Simeon87 · Source · CC BY-SA 3.0

    El Al 1862, Bijlmermeer

    Amsterdam, Netherlands Fatalities: 43

    Engine pylon separation and loss of control.

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  15. National Transportation Safety Board · Source · Public domain

    TWA 800

    Off Long Island, United States Fatalities: 230

    Centre fuel tank explosion.

    Read the full account

  16. Rex B. Cordell, U.S. Navy. · Source · Public domain

    Korean Air 801

    Guam Fatalities: 228

    Controlled flight into terrain on approach.

    Read the full account

  17. Boeing-747.com · CC BY 4.0

    Korean Air Cargo 8509

    Near Stansted, England Fatalities: 4

    Attitude-indicator fault and loss of control.

    Read the full account

  18. Taiwan Transportation Safety Board · Source · Public domain

    Singapore Airlines 006

    Taipei, Taiwan Fatalities: 83

    Takeoff on a closed runway.

    Read the full account

  19. Tom Lo · Source · CC BY-SA 4.0

    China Airlines 611

    Taiwan Strait Fatalities: 225

    Structural failure after an improper repair.

    Read the full account

  20. Michael Eaton-Aviation · Source · CC BY-SA 4.0

    UPS 6

    Dubai, United Arab Emirates Fatalities: 2

    Cargo fire and loss of control.

    Read the full account

  21. Korea Aviation Accident Investigation Board · Source · KOGL Type 1

    Asiana 991

    Off Jeju, South Korea Fatalities: 2

    In-flight cargo fire.

    Read the full account

  22. National Transportation Safety Board · Source · Public domain

    National Airlines 102

    Bagram, Afghanistan Fatalities: 7

    Cargo restraint failure and flight-control damage.

    Read the full account

Reading the figures: fatalities include people on the ground where applicable. The Korean Air Lines 015 account explains conflicting historical counts. The Pan Am 73 figure follows the U.S. Justice Department chronology; the Amsterdam total follows the City Archives' final count.

Understanding the safety lessons

These events involved different causes: runway operations, navigation, repairs, structural failures, cargo restraint, fire and security. The detail pages distinguish investigation findings from historical context and identify gaps in the available record.

For the equipment behind those findings, explore 747 systems and the 747 family. For a broader event database, visit the Aviation Safety Network.

Frequently asked questions

What was the worst Boeing 747 accident?
The Tenerife airport disaster of 27 March 1977, in which two 747s collided on the runway. 583 people died, making it the deadliest accident in aviation history. The deadliest involving a single aircraft was Japan Air Lines Flight 123 in 1985, in which 520 people died.
Does this list include every Boeing 747 accident?
No. It covers 22 selected accidents and incidents, including non-fatal events, hijackings and bombings. The Aviation Safety Network database provides broader coverage.

Sources

Facts on this page are checked against the primary and institutional references below.

  1. List of accidents and incidents involving the Boeing 747 - Wikipedia
  2. Aviation Safety Network - accident database - Flight Safety Foundation

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