United Airlines Case Study

United Airlines Flight 173, a McDonnell-Douglas DC-8-61, N8082U, crashed in Portland, Oregon on December 28, 1978. This accident was a seminal event in aviation history in general, and in the history of Crew Resource Management (CRM) specifically. In fact, the circumstances of this accident are generally considered to have been the catalyst for the development of what has become the modern Crew Resource Management (CRM) movement in aviation, which in itself is widely considered a cornerstone of modern aviation human factors and aviation safety.
United Airlines Flight 232, a McDonnell-Douglas DC -10-10, N1819U, crashed in Sioux City, Iowa on July 19, 1989. This was also a seminal event in both aviation and Crew Resource Management (CRM) history. In fact, a NASA Propulsion Controlled Aircraft study using a McDonnell-Douglas MD-11 aircraft was conducted as a outgrowth of this accident. The circumstances of this accident are also widely considered to be an outstanding example of the successful improvement in aviation safety that can result from a modern (at that time) Crew Resource Management program.

Individually analyze and evaluate the factual information portions of both the UAL 173 NTSB Accident Report (PDF) and the UAL 232 NTSB Accident Report (PDF). Next, creatively apply the results of your analysis to both of these accidents. Finally, compare and contrast the circumstances of both of these accidents in regard to Crew Resource Management principles and procedures and draw conclusions.