# Incident 19980826043009I: Lear 31A, Chicago, IL, August 26, 1998

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 26, 1998, 17:01 local time
- Place: Chicago, IL
- Airport: Chicago Midway
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff Ground Roll
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 41.7856° N, 87.7527° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at CHICAGO MIDWAY INTL (MDW), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.7856&lon=-87.7527&mi=10
- Aircraft: N105FX (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: LEAR 31A
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 3,595 total, 720 in this make and model, 135 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980826043009I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-5)PIC UNLATCHED THE RH ENGINE COWLING IN PREPARATION TO SHOW THE CO-PILOT HOW TO DO A MORE THOROUGH PRE-FLIGHT INSPECTION. HE WAS DISTRACTED BY A CALL TO THE FBO AND THEN HIS PASSENGERS ARRIVED AND HE FORGOT TO RELATCH THE ENGINE COWLING.  UPON TAKEOFF THE COWLING OPENED AND WAS NOTICED BY A CREW IN AN AIRCRAFT ON THE TAXIWAY WAITING TO DEPART, WHO RADIOED THE TOWER ABOUT THE OPEN COWL.  TOWER CONTACTED SUBJECT  AIRCRAFT AND A RETURN TO THE AIRPORT WAS REQUESTED.  AN EMERGENCY WAS DECLARED IN ORDER TO EXPEDITE THE RETURN TO THE AIRPORT RATHER THAN BEING VECTORED AROUND FOR AN APPROACH.  LANDING WAS NORMAL AND AIRCRAFT TAXIED BACK TO THE FBO TO ASSESS THE SITUATION AND DETERMINE EXTENT OF DAMAGE TO COWLING AREA.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft 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. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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