San Diego International Airport

Annual traffic

Accidents and incidents

• On April 29, 1929, a Ford Trimotor operated by Maddux Air Lines collided in mid-air with a PW-9D shortly after taking off from Lindbergh Field. The aircraft collided over downtown San Diego, killing all five aboard the Trimotor and the USAAC pilot of PW-9D. According to eyewitness accounts, shortly before the collision the Air Corps pilot had been flying extremely close to the larger airliner in an impromptu show for viewers on the ground, when he misjudged the distance between the two aircraft and crashed into it.
• On June 2, 1941, the first British Consolidated LB-30 Liberator II, AL503, on its acceptance flight for delivery from the Consolidated Aircraft Company plant in San Diego, crashed into San Diego Bay when the flight controls froze, killing all five of the civilian crew: Consolidated Aircraft Company's chief test pilot William Wheatley, co-pilot Alan Austen, flight engineer Bruce Kilpatrick Craig, and two chief mechanics, Lewis McCannon and William Reiser. Craig had been commissioned a 2nd lieutenant in the US Army Reserve in 1935 following Infantry ROTC training at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering. He had applied for a commission in the US Army Air Corps before his death; this was granted posthumously, with the rank of 2nd lieutenant. On August 25, 1941, the airfield in his hometown of Selma, Alabama was renamed Craig Field, later Craig Air Force Base. Investigation into the cause of the accident caused a two-month delay in deliveries, resulting in the Royal Air Force not receiving Liberator IIs until August 1941.
• On May 10, 1943, the first Consolidated XB-32 Dominator, 41–141, crashed on take-off at Lindbergh Field, likely from failure of the flaps. Although the bomber did not burn when it piled up at the end of the runway, Consolidated's senior test pilot Dick McMakin was killed. Six others on board were injured. This was one of only two twin-finned B-32s ; all subsequent planes had a PB4Y-style single tail.
• On November 22, 1944, Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, BuNo 59544, on a pre-delivery test flight from Lindbergh Field, took off at 12:23 am, lost its left outer wing on climb-out, and crashed in a ravine in an undeveloped area of Loma Portal near the Naval Training Center, less than from the runway. All six members of the Consolidated Vultee test crew were killed, including pilot Marvin R. Weller, co-pilot Conrad C. Cappe, flight engineers Frank D. Sands and Clifford P. Bengston, radio operator Robert B. Skala, and Consolidated Vultee field operations employee Ray Estes. A wing panel landed on a home at 3121 Kingsley Street in Loma Portal. The cause was found to be 98 missing bolts; the wing was only attached with four spar bolts. Four employees who either were responsible for installation, or were inspectors who signed off on the undone work, were fired two days later. A San Diego coroner's jury found Consolidated Vultee guilty of "gross negligence" by vote of 11–1 on January 5, 1945, and the Bureau of Aeronautics reduced its contract by one at a cost to firm of US$155,000. Consolidated Vultee paid out US$130,484 to the families of the six dead crew.
• On April 5, 1945, the prototype Ryan XFR-1 Fireball, BuNo 48234, on a test flight over Lindbergh Field, lost skin between the front and rear spars of the right wing, interrupting airflow over the wing and causing it to break apart. Ryan test pilot Dean Lake bailed out as the airframe disintegrated. The wreckage struck a brand new Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, BuNo 59836, just accepted by the US Navy and preparing to depart for the modification center at Litchfield Park, Arizona. The bomber caught fire and the four man Navy crew was forced to evacuate the burning PB4Y, with aviation machinist J. H. Randall suffering first, second, and third degree burns and minor lacerations while the rest of the crew was uninjured.
• On April 30, 1945, just before midnight, the first production Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer, BuNo 59359, was being prepared on the ramp at Lindbergh Field for a flight to Naval Air Station Twin Cities in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A mechanic attempted to remove the left battery solenoid, located below the cockpit floor, but did so without disconnecting the battery. A ratchet wrench accidentally punctured a hydraulic line above the battery and the fluid ignited, setting the entire aircraft alight. The mechanic suffered severe burns. Only the number four engine was deemed salvageable. The cause was an unqualified mechanic attempting a task that only a qualified electrician should perform.
• On August 5, 1952, Convair B-36D-25-CF Peacemaker, 49-2661, returning from a pre-delivery test after being modified for the San-San project, suffered an uncontrollable engine fire in the right wing while attempting to land at Lindbergh Field. The #4 and #5 engines fell off the aircraft as the Convair test crew steered the crippled bomber towards the ocean. Seven of the eight crew on board bailed out, with Pilot David H. Franks heroically electing to stay with the aircraft to prevent it turning back towards the heavily populated coast, but flight engineer W.W. Hoffman drowned before he could be rescued. A USAF accident investigation was inconclusive, with a failure in the #5 engine's alternator, supercharger, fuel or exhaust systems suggested as possible causes.
• On July 15, 1953, the prototype Convair XP5Y-1 Tradewind seaplane, BuNo 121455, on a test flight off Point Loma after taking off from the water next to Lindbergh Field, fractured an elevator torque tube rendering the aircraft uncontrollable. All nine on board bailed out safely and were rescued.
• On November 4, 1954, an experimental Convair YF2Y Sea Dart seaplane, BuNo 135762, on a demonstration flight for Navy officials over San Diego Bay after taking off from the water next to Lindbergh Field, disintegrated in mid-air after its pilot inadvertently exceeded the airframe's structural limits. Convair test pilot Charles E. Richbourg was pulled from the water but did not survive.
• On September 25, 1978, a Boeing 727-200 operating flight PSA Flight 182 on the Sacramento–Los Angeles–San Diego route collided in mid-air with a Cessna 172 while attempting to land at San Diego Airport. The two aircraft collided over San Diego's North Park neighborhood, killing all 135 people on Flight 182, the two people in the Cessna, and seven people on the ground. An NTSB accident investigation found the probable accident's cause was the PSA flight crew's failure to inform the tower they had lost sight of the Cessna, in contradiction to air traffic control instructions to "keep visual separation" from the smaller aircraft. Other factors named were errors on the part of ATC, including the use of pilot-maintained visual separation when ATC-monitored radar separation was available, and an unexpected turn by the Cessna that put it directly in the path of the 727.
• On August 11, 2023, Southwest Airlines Flight 2493 and a Cessna Citation V business jet nearly collided, but this was avoided when the Cessna aborted its landing and passed over the Southwest plane waiting to depart by 100 feet. There were no injuries.
• On May 20, 2025, Hawaiian Airlines Flight 15, an Airbus A330, was pushed back from its gate for departure to Honolulu International Airport. At 845am PT, Port of San Diego Harbor Police received a dispatch call from the captain advising them of a possible bomb threat on board. During pushback, flight attendants overheard a guest making threats to the safety of their aircraft. All 293 occupants were deplaned and the FBI cleared the plane. It was determined that a Navy technician had made fake bomb threats to a passenger next to him. He was arrested.
• On June 8, 2025, a Cessna 414 owned by vitamin and dietary supplement maker Optimal Health Systems crashed into the ocean off the coast of Point Loma shortly after takeoff. All six occupants were reported missing and later confirmed to have been killed in the crash.
• On September 17, 2025, a Cessna Citation X N769XJ suffered a nose wheel collapse upon takeoff. The airport was subsequently closed for 5 hours, with many flights diverting to surrounding airports. There were no reported injuries.