Probable cause
The fueler's falling asleep in the fueling truck with the truck in neutral and without the parking brake set, which allowed the truck to roll until it impacted the airplane.
NTSB analysis
The fuel truck driver indicated that he had been waiting 10-15 minutes for the flight to arrive and that the truck was in neutral with no emergency brake set. He stated that he had his foot on the brake but that he closed his eyes briefly and fell asleep and was unaware of what happened until the fuel truck collided with a parked airplane that had just arrived at the gate. One of the two flight attendants received a minor injury; there were no injuries to the other crew members or the passengers. The airplane received substantial damage to the aft portion of the fuselage where the fuel truck impacted.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for DCA10CA018 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Dec 18, 2009
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Dallas, Texas
- Nearest airport
- Dallas/Fort Worth Intl Airport (DFW)
- Highest injury
- Minor
- Minor injuries
- 1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Bombardier CL600 2C10
- N-number
- N515AE
- Category
- Airplane
- Damage
- Substantial
- Operating rule
- Part 121 (airline)
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.