Originally Posted by
buckeyefanflyer
I thought it was common practice that airlines retire flight numbers for flight accident flights especially where there are fatalities. I see 625 and 383 are in use. When was this practice changed.
It hasn't changed but airlines are selective in which accidents make the permanently retired table. The most notorious/deadly ones and more recent ones being most likely to be disused.
I had to look up both AAL383 and 625. I was aware of the AA crash at CVG (and the TWA flight that hit the very same hill) but never would have remembered (or known) its flight number. Similarly, I was vaguely aware of the AA B-727 overrun at STT but never knew it by flight number.
AA331 is an active flight number but AA1420 appears to be retired.