FTW93IA064

NTSB incident investigation · Mcdonnell Douglas DC9-82 · Dfw Airport, TX · January 10, 1993

Incident · Minor injuriesIncident investigationFinal report
Date
January 10, 1993, 10:22 local (16:22 UTC)
Place
Dfw Airport, TX
Injuries
5 minor, 84 uninjured
Damage
No damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N7532AMcdonnell Douglas DC9-82
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report November 3, 1993
Report
Approved by Office Director
Case key
18677

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the incident.

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Probable cause

The inaccurate safety advisory provided by the tower operator. A factor was the emergency evacuation

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.

Miscellaneous/otherLanding - roll
Safety advisory - inaccurateAtc personnel(lcl/gnd/clnc)Cause
Evacuation - performedPilot in commandFactor

Analysis

During a landing the FAA tower operator reported smoke being emitted from the left main landing gear. The captain requested aircraft rescue and fire fighting (ARFF) assistance and verify the possibility of fire. The captain ordered the evacuation of the airplane as a precautionary measure. Following the evacuation the airplane was examined, no evidence of heat or fire was found. High speed taxi and braking operations were performed, no smoke or heat was generated

Factual narrative

On January 10, 1993, at 1022 central standard time (CST) a McDonnell Douglas DC9 82, N7532A, landed at DFW International Airport, Texas, following a flight from Lambert Field, St Louis, Missouri. During the landing roll the tower reported to the captain that smoke was emitting from the main landing gear. As the smoke continued to develop the captain ordered the airplane be evacuated by means of the emergency egress systems. No crew members were injured during the evacuation, however, of the 83 passengers and 6 crewmembers five passengers sustained minor injuries as they exited via the slide systems. There was no damage to the airplane and weather was visual meteorological conditions. The American Airlines airplane was operating under 14 CFR Part 121 as flight number 1279.

An examination of the airplane by the operator (observed by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector) after its recovery revealed no damage, no evidence of heat discoloration, fire, and no hydraulic leaks or other fluids in the landing gear. The operator performed several high speed taxi tests and breaking tests, this did not produce any smoke. A review of the flight records indicated that the airplane was deiced prior to leaving St. Louis, Missouri.

Aircraft

Registration
N7532A
Reported as
Mcdonnell Douglas DC9-82
Category
Airplane
Serial number
49924
Airframe hours
6,791
Engine
P&W JT8-217-B6, 20,000 lbs thrust, turbo fan
Damage
No damage
Flight
Part 121
Operator
American Airlines
Registered owner
Wilimigton Trust Company
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Transport
Last inspection
AAIP · January 2, 2000
Departed
STL · St Louis, MO
Flight plan
IFR
Airport
DFW · Dfw International, runway 35, 11,388 × 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
41
Certificate
Airline transport
Airplane ratings
Multi-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
Seat
Left
Flight hours
11,000 total · 290 in this make and model · 200 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
340° at 9 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
1,400 ft broken
Temperature
30 °F, dew point 27 °F
Altimeter
30.00 inHg