Moments after a United Airlines plane failed to slow down on a wet runway and rolled off the taxiway at George Bush Intercontinental Airport last year, the captain told his first officer: “Oh, my God, I can’t believe this happened.”
New records released by the National Transportation Safety Board shed light on the pilots’ cockpit conversations during and after the March 2024 Memphis-to-Houston flight.
The material includes a security video of the aircraft sliding into the grass with its left main landing gear collapsed, a transcript capturing the crew’s reactions after struggling to slow the plane, and interviews with the pilots by federal investigators.
READ MORE: United flight lands in Houston but exits off taxiway into the grass at IAH
The NTSB is an independent federal agency that investigates transportation accidents and issues safety recommendations. Releasing the records on a public docket is part of the NTSB’s investigative process. The investigation is still ongoing and no cause has been announced, but the new material provides more details about the incident.
The Boeing 737 failed to decelerate sufficiently before trying to exit the runway, according to an NTSB performance study. Investigators said the plane didn’t slow down in time after landing because the crew eased off the key braking systems on the wet runway. The plane’s speed brakes retracted seconds after touchdown, which disengaged the automatic brakes, and reverse thrust was later reduced, making it harder to slow the aircraft before it reached the end of the runway.
In a report from last year, the captain said he was concerned because, at about 1,000 feet from the end of the runway, the aircraft wasn’t slowing sufficiently. The captain applied greater brake pressure, but the fuselage and rudder brake pedals violently shook as he attempted to turn the aircraft toward the taxiway.
The plane ended up on unpaved ground, slightly tilted on its side. The transcript released Wednesday showed the captain apologized to the first officer and asked if the crew and passengers were OK.
“Oh, my God, I can’t believe this happened,” the captain said.
NTSB records identify the captain as Alireza Johartchi and the first officer as Michael Dickson.
While checking on the passengers after the crash, the transcript shows the captain telling his first officer: “Can’t believe I did this,” “Sorry, man, to get you into this mess,” and “Oh God, this is crazy.”
Johartchi also seemed concerned about what would happen to him, emphasizing a possible violation or a write-up.
“I thought it was gonna stop. Dude, I am so frickin’ sorry to get you in this. I am so sorry,” the captain said.
The captain told the first officer that they should not discuss anything while on the plane and seemed concerned about the crash being on social media. The first officer asked, “So at this point we can’t discuss anything with anybody, right?”
Johartchi replied: “Nope.”
The captain later told NTSB investigators: “I was devastated, devastated. To this moment, I’m devastated.”
Dickson told the investigators that “at no point” did he feel uncomfortable with Johartchi’s decision-making.
There were no reported injuries from the crash and 160 passengers were transported to the terminals.
This article originally published at ‘I can’t believe this happened’: Audio reveals moments after United plane slips off Houston taxiway.