# Incident 19981206045509I: Boeing 727223, Atlantic Ocean, December 6, 1998

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 6, 1998, 14:11 local time
- Place: Atlantic Ocean
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: Air carrier (Part 121)
- Operator: AALA
- Aircraft: N710AA (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BOEING 727223
- Pilot flight hours: 10,000 total
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19981206045509I

## Narrative

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

(-5)AIRCRAFT WAS ENROUTE TO EWR FROM SJU AND WAS DISPATCHED W/O FUEL HEATER WORKING. THE PLAN WAS TO FLY THE AIRCRAFT AT A SLIGHTLY LOWER ALTITUDE AND AT A FASTER CRUISE SPEED TO KEEP THE FUEL TEMPERATURE ABOVE ZERO DEGREES CENTIGRADE AS REQUIRED BY THE FLIGHT MANUAL. DUE TO TURBULANCE THE PILOT WAS UNABLE TO MAINTAIN HIS SPEED AND THE FUEL TEMPERATURE DECREASED.  UNABLE TO MAINTAIN FUEL TEMP ABOVE FREEZING, THE PILOT INITIATED AN EMERGENCY DESCENT WHEN HE COULD NOT GET IMMEDIATE CLEARANCE TO DESCEND.  CHECKING THE BOEING MANUALS AND THE MEL, IT APPEARS THAT THE MANUFACTURER REQUIRES A DESCENT TO WARMER TEMPS WHEN FUEL TEMPERATURE APPROACHES ZERO DESGREES CENTIGRADE.  ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ IN ANY CASE BASED ON THE PROCEDURES IN HIS HANDBOOK, THE PILOT EXERCISED HIS EMERGENCY AUTHORITY AND NO DISCIPLINARY ACTION IS WARRANTED.

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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