McDonnell Douglas MD-82 N470AA
28 April 1997 · Tucson, Arizona, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 28 April 1997 at about 19:22 local time, a McDonnell Douglas MD-82 registered N470AA was involved in an incident near Tucson, Arizona, United States. 123 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 19:22
- Classification
- Incident
- Location
- Tucson, Arizona, United States
- Nearest airport
- Tucson International (KTUS)
- Coordinates
- 32.1494, -110.9307
- Aircraft
- McDonnell Douglas MD-82
- Registration
- N470AA
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 121: Air Carrier
- Purpose of flight
- Unknown
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Unknown → Dallas
- Aircraft damage
- Minor
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX97IA170
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 123 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 123 |
Probable cause
an undetermined failure in the #1 (left) engine turbine assembly, which resulted in a fracture of the first stage nozzle guide vane (NGV) and subsequent damage to the turbine blades.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
During takeoff/initial climb, the aircraft sustained a contained failure of the left engine turbine section, as well as a tail pipe fire. The flightcrew returned to the airport, made a successful landing, and stopped on the runway, where an evacuation was initiated. The flight deck crew gave the evacuation command and instructed the flight attendants to 'use the right side exits only.' A short time later, Flight 230 asked the tower 'how do I correspond with the folks in the trucks and make sure what's going on with the left engine . . .' The controller replied, 'you go to one two four point four that's the ground control frequency and airport forty six is in charge of the fire rescue.' Review of the transcripts revealed that the crew experienced difficulty in establishing radio contact with the airport CFR vehicles. Postincident engine teardown revealed considerable damage of the stage 1 to stage 4 turbine blades. The 1st stage NGV was found with the outer buttress aft flow guide (angel wing) completely missing. The 1T blade damage was consistent with damage caused by liberated angel wing hardware; however, determination of the initial fracture mode was not possible.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other McDonnell Douglas MD-82 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 Feb 1997 | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | Newark, New Jersey, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 27 Apr 1997 | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | Jinan, China | China Eastern Airlines | Unknown | - |
| 23 Nov 1996 | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | Dfw Airport, Texas, United States | American Airlines | Minor injuries | - |
| 3 Jun 1996 | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | Childress, Texas, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 2 Jun 1999 | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | Little Rock, Arkansas, United States | - | Fatal | 11 |
| 28 Jan 1999 | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | Naples, Italy | Alitalia | Unknown | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Oct 1997 | Beechcraft 99-C99 | Meadview, Arizona, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Dec 1997 | Mooney M20J | Sedona, Arizona, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 30 Dec 1997 | Piper PA-11 | Willow Beach, Arizona, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 2 Oct 1997 | Blackwell MIDGET MUSTANG | Glendale, Arizona, United States | Rodney L. Link | No injuries | - |
| 4 Oct 1997 | American 8KCAB | Payson, Arizona, United States | Roger Parks | No injuries | - |
| 13 Oct 1997 | Cessna 150 | Temple Bar, Arizona, United States | Blair C. Peterson | No injuries | - |