Denver, CO, USA
DABVN
Boeing 747-400
The Boeing 747-400 was taxiing to the gate following landing. The adjacent jetway had not been retracted completely after it was last used. As the airplane approached its jetway, the airplane's number 1 engine struck the adjacent jetway causing scraping, dents, and puncture damage to the engine nacelle.
On April 23, 2006, at 1633 mountain daylight time, a Boeing 747-400, DABVN, operated by Lufthansa German Airlines and piloted by an airline transport certificated pilot, sustained minor damage when it collided with a jetway while taxiing to its gate at Denver International Airport (DEN), Denver, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the incident. The scheduled foreign passenger flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 129 under an instrument flight rules flight plan. The captain, first officer, relief captain, 16 flight attendants, and 382 passengers were not injured. The transoceanic flight originated in Frankfurt, Germany, at an undetermined time, and had landed at its destination when the incident occurred. The station manager reported that Flight 446 was taxiing into gate A41. The jetway for the adjacent gate, gate A43, had not been retracted after its last usage. The airplane's number 1 engine struck the A43 jetway. An examination of the airplane revealed the number 1 engine nacelle had been scraped, dented, and punctured. Following the incident, Lufthansa revised their station manual procedures to position two additional marshalling wing walkers so as to prevent a recurrence of this type incident.
The ground crew's failure to retract the adjacent jetway and to verify the airplane's clearance with the jetway as it taxied.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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