- Date
- September 20, 1991, 18:40 local (22:40 UTC)
- Place
- Detroit, MI
- Injuries
- 136 uninjured
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N88704Boeing 727-224
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 31, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910920042029I
- Case key
- 14932
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.
On this page
Probable cause
Inadequate maintenance inspection of the main landing gear actuator assembly by company maintenance personnel. A factor in the incident is inadequate design of the landing gear actuator by the manufacturer.
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
The incident airplane landed with the left main landing gear partially extended. The landing gear had failed to retract properly after takeoff. The airplane remained in the area of the departure airport while the crew, in concert with company maintenance personnel and the airplane manufacturer, unsuccessfully attempted to troubleshoot and restore the landing gear to working order. They landed back at the departure airport with crash fire rescue equipment standing by. Fire trucks applied foam to the left wing and wheel area after the airplane stopped on the runway. After landing the crew and passengers exited the airplane using the aircraft airstairs. Inspection of the left main landing gear (MLG) revealed the landing gear trucks had been captured and suspended in an intermediate position by the left main gear inboard door assembly. Examination of the MLG door actuator fitting showed the actuator had moved to the FAR end of the available adjustment range.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N88704
- Reported as
- Boeing 727-224
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 19513
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-9, 14,500 lbs thrust, turbo jet
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Continental Airlines
- Registered owner
- First Security Bank Of Utah
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · July 26, 1991
- Destination
- DEN · Denver, CO
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- DTW · Detroit Metro Wayne Co., runway 3, 12,000 × 200 ft, concrete
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
- 57
- Certificates
- Commercial, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 29,000 total · 1,999 in this make and model · 18,000 as pilot in command · 270 in the last 90 days · 80 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 350° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- DTW, 1 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 N88704 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.