- Date
- January 18, 1992, 10:28 local (15:28 UTC)
- Place
- Horseheads, NY
- Injuries
- 2 serious, 39 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N964VJDouglas DC-9-30
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 26, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920118000819A
- Case key
- 11714
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The aircraft encountered a sudden wind gust during landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing.
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
At the time of the accident, gusty winds were forecast for the surface to higher altiutdes. The copilot was flying and configured the airplane about four miles out for landing on runway 24. The flightcrew recieved progressive wind information during the approach; the last report was wind at 310 degress and 25 knots. The approach speed was v ref + 10. According to the flightcrew, during the landing flare a wind gust occurred, and the airplane lifted in a nose down attitude. The gust stopped and then the airplane descended to the runway and landed hard. The examination of the airplane revealed the fuselage cracked near where the wings were attached and the aft fuselage was bent down about seven degrees.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N964VJ
- Reported as
- Douglas DC-9-30
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 47373
- Airframe hours
- 59,251
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-7B, 15,000 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Usair, doing business as Usair
- Registered owner
- Usair
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · January 17, 1992 · 3 hours before
- Departed
- ITH · Ithaca, NY
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- ELM · Elmira/Corning Regional, runway 24, 6,999 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 52
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 19,000 total · 9,500 in this make and model · 117 in the last 90 days · 49 in the last 30 days · 7 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 14 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 19 °F, dew point 3 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ELM, 999 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N964VJ · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.