McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10CF N68055

Summary

On 5 September 1996 at about 09:54 local time, a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10CF registered N68055 was involved in an accident near Newburgh, New York, United States. 5 people were on board and 2 had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

5 September 1996 at 09:54

Classification

Accident

Location

Newburgh, New York, United States

Nearest airport

Newburgh/Stewart Intl (SWF)

Coordinates

41.5005, -74.0193

Aircraft

McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10CF

Registration

N68055

Category

Airplane

Engines

3

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Memphis → Boston

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Dawn

NTSB number

DCA96MA079

2 people had minor injuries.

an in-flight cargo fire of undetermined origin. (NTSB Report AAR-98/03)

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was at FL 330 when the flightcrew determined that there was smoke in the cabin cargo compartment. An emergency was declared and the flight diverted to Newburgh/Stewart International Airport and landed. The airplane was destroyed by fire after landing. The fire had burned for about 4 hours after after smoke was first detected. Investigation revealed that the deepest and most severe heat and fire damage occurred in and around container 6R, which contained a DNA synthesizer containing flammable liquids. More of 6R's structure was consumed than of any other container, and it was the only container that exhibited severe floor damage. Further, 6R was the only container to exhibit heat damage on its bottom surface, and the area below container 6R showed the most extensive evidence of scorching of the composite flooring material. However, there was insufficient reliable evidence to reach a conclusion as to where the fire originated. The presence of flammable chemicals in the DNA synthesizer was wholly unintended and unknown to the preparer of the package and shipper. The captain did not adequately manage his crew resourses when he failed to call for checklists or to monitor and facilitate the accomplishment of required checklist items. The Department of Transportation hazardous materials regulations do not adequately address the need for hazardous materials information on file at a carrier to be quickly retrievable in a format useful to emergency responders.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.