40.4406° N, 79.9959° WPlaced by OpenAirDocs: center of Pittsburgh, PA, within about 6 miles.Open in the map
Date
December 3, 1987 · 14:50 local
Place
Pittsburgh, PA
Airport
Greater Pittsburgh International
Phase of flight
To Aborted (Fixed Wing)
Operating rules
Air carrier (Part 121)
Operator
USAA
Damage
Minor damage
Aircraft
N781AL
Reported as
Boeing 727227
Reported engine
Pratt & Whitney JT8D7A
People aboard
126
Fatal injuries
0
Pilot’s flight hours
28,600 total4,450 in this make and model150 in the last 90 days
From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
What happened
The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.
Takeoff aborted due to fire in engine. Fire bottles used. Engine revealed a failure of the second stage fan disk.
As the FAA filed it
TAKEOFF ABORTED DUE TO FIRE IN ENGINE. FIRE BOTTLES USED. ENGINE REVEALED A FAILURE OF THE SECOND STAGE FAN DISK.