# Incident 20170517004729I: Airbus A-320-214, Denver, CO, May 17, 2017

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 17, 2017, 12:42 local time
- Place: Denver, CO
- Airport: Denver International
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Touchdown
- Operating rules: Air carrier (Part 121)
- Operator: F3LA
- Location: 39.8617° N, 104.6732° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at DENVER INTL (DEN), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.8617&lon=-104.6732&mi=10
- Aircraft: N228FR, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N228FR-2025-06-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Airbus A320-214 (registry code 3940006, https://openairdocs.org/model/airbus-a320-214) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: CFM International CFM56-5B4/3 series (registry code 13090, https://openairdocs.org/engine/cfm-international-cfm56-5b4-3-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AIRBUS A-320-214
- People aboard: 178
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20170517004729I

## Narrative

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

ON MAY 17, 2017 AT 1242 MDT  AN AIRBUS A320-214, N228FR, MSN 5526 OPERATED BY FRONTIER AIRLINES INC. MADE A HARD LANDING ON RUNWAY 35L AT DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (DEN). DUE TO THE HARD LANDING THE FUSELAGE TAIL CAME INTO CONTACT WITH THE RUNWAY SURFACE RESULTING IN A TAIL STRIKE. THE AIRCRAFT GENERATED LOAD REPORT 15 AND SUBSEQUENT FLIGHT DATA DECODING REVEALED A LANDING WITH A MAX VERTICAL ACCELERATION OF +3.16G AND A VERTICAL SPEED OF -14FT/S (+/- 2FT/S). THE INFORMATION ANALYSIS INDICATES THAT WIND SHEAR WAS THE CAUSE OF THE RAPID DECENT AND INDUCED THE HARD LANDING WITH SUBSEQUENT TAIL STRIKE.

WEATHER AT THE TIME OF THE LANDING WAS DAY VFR, 82 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT; WINDS WERE 280 DEGREES AND 13 KNOTS GUSTING TO 20 WITH SCATTERED CLOUDS AND 10 MILES OF VISIBILITY.

ENGINEERING AUTHORIZATION A2-53R-33764 REV. A DATED 06/01/2017 WAS ACCOMPLISHED TO CORRECT FUSELAGE SKIN DAMAGE EXTENDING 5.5 INCHES FORWARD OF FRAME 65 TO 5.2 INCHES AFT OF FRAME 66 BETWEEN STRINGERS 43 LEFT AND 43 RIGHT.

THREE SERVICE DIFFICULTY REPORTS FILED AFTER THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN-DOCKED FOR MAINTENANCE AT PEMCO IN TAMPA FL.

F3LA2017060500173, L/H FRAME 69 SHEAR WEB P/N D5347112420300.

F3LA20170605001740, R/H FRAME 69 SHEAR WEB P/N D5347112420200.

F3LA20170605000175, REMOVE AND REPLACE ALL FASTENERS WITHIN .600 OF THE BLENDED AREA PER ENGINEERING AUTHORIZATION A2-53R-33764.

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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