- Date
- November 15, 1987, 11:00 local (16:00 UTC)
- Place
- Cleveland, OH
- Injuries
- 64 uninjured
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8988EDouglas DC-9-31
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 10, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19871115081909A
- Case key
- 7626
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
While descending into Cleveland from 25,000 feet the pilot, experienced a violent lurch in the airframe. The flight continued and landed without incident. An aircraft examination disclosed that the right upper thrust reverser drive link was broken. Further examination of the drive link disclosed a fatigue fracture.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8988E
- Reported as
- Douglas DC-9-31
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 47098
- Airframe hours
- 50,351
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-7B, 18,500 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Eastern Airlines, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Eastern Airlines Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · August 8, 1987 · 609 hours before
- Departed
- Atlanta, GA
- Destination
- Cleveland, OH
- Flight plan
- IFR
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 51
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 14,055 total · 1,014 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.