# NTSB LAX96IA300: Douglas DC-9-51, N420EA, Honolulu, HI, August 8, 1996 - Type: NTSB incident investigation - Classification: Incident · No injuries · Incident investigation · Final report - Date: August 8, 1996, 07:57 local (17:57 UTC) - Place: Honolulu, HI - Location: 21.3178° N, 157.9203° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at DANIEL K INOUYE INTL (HNL), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=21.3178&lon=-157.9203&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 76 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 16, 1996 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 29300 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX96IA300 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/29300/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX96IA300 ## Probable cause Improper installation of a flexible hydraulic hose by company maintenance personnel and inadequate inspection of the work by company inspectors which resulted in the loose hose becoming entangled in the nose gear linkage, preventing complete extension of the nose gear. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Nose gear collapsed, landing - roll - hydraulic system,line - not secured (cause) - hydraulic system,line - entangled - landing gear,nose gear - jammed - maintenance,installation - improper, company maintenance personnel (cause) - maintenance,inspection - inadequate, company maintenance personnel (cause) ## Analysis The nose landing gear did not fully extend as the flight approached its destination. After confirming the unsafe gear position through an inspection window, the crew completed emergency checklist procedures and readied the passenger cabin for an emergency landing while returning to the departure airport. In the ensuing emergency landing the nose gear collapsed and the aircraft came to a stop on the runway on its nose. A partial cabin evacuation was completed via the tailcone slide before it was determined safe to exit the remaining passengers and crew through the forward cabin doors. Inspection revealed that an improperly secured flexible hydraulic hose had engaged the nose wheel downlock mechanism preventing it from locking over center. The flexible hose was installed temporarily to replace a leaking rigid line. ## Factual narrative On August 8, 1996, at 0757 hours Hawaiian standard time, a Douglas DC-9-51, N420EA, was brought to a stop on runway 8R after the nose landing gear collapsed during landing at Honolulu International Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii. The aircraft, which received minor damage, was operated by Hawaiian Airlines, Inc., under 14 CFR Part 121, as flight 113. There were no injuries among the 71 passengers, 3 cabin crew, and 2 cockpit crew aboard. The flight was on an instrument flight plan and departed Honolulu in visual meteorological conditions about 0700 destined for Lihue, Hawaii. It returned to Honolulu without landing at Lihue when the unsafe nose gear indication was observed during the approach there. Personnel from the FAA's Honolulu Flight Standards District Office reported that the flight crew observed alignment marks on the nose gear linkage through an inspection window in the cockpit which confirmed that the nose gear was not locked down. En route back to Honolulu, the captain declared an emergency, ordered emergency equipment, and instructed the cabin crew to prepare the cabin. The cabin crew reported that there was ample time to prepare the cabin and that the landing was uneventful until the aircraft was relatively slow and the nose gear gently collapsed. The aircraft came to a stop on the runway on its nose. There was some smoke and burning odor in the cabin and the cockpit crew ordered an evacuation of the cabin. About 25 passengers exited via the aft slide before crash and rescue personnel arrived and determined that it would be safe to deplane the remaining passengers through the forward doors using stepladders. Four people went to the hospital for observation; two were the front cabin flight attendants and two others were non-revenue flight attendants aboard the flight. Investigation revealed that a flexible hydraulic hose was not secured in the nosewheel well. The flexible hose had been temporarily installed in the nosewheel steering system to replace a previously broken fixed line. The hose become trapped in the nose gear over center, down lock mechanism (Douglas part numbers 3913968-13 and 5920210-3) during the gear extension. The incident occurred on the first flight cycle following the maintenance alteration of the hose installation. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N420EA](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N420EA-2006-05-16), registration cancelled 2006-05-16, S/N 47689, built 1975 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Douglas DC-9-51 - Registry model: [Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-51](https://openairdocs.org/model/mcdonnell-douglas-dc-9-51) (registry code 3022051) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney JT8D-9 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-jt8d-9-series) (registry code 52048, turbo-jet) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 47689 - Airframe hours: 41097 - Engines: P&W JT8D-17 16000 lbs thrust turbo fan - Damage: Minor damage - Flight: Part 121 - Registered owner: Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Transport - Last inspection: Continuous airworthiness, August 8, 1996, 1 hours before - Departed: HNL - Destination: LIH, LIHUE, HI - Flight plan: IFR - Airport: HNL, Honolulu International, runway 8R, 12,000 × 200 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 38; airline transport; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; seat: left; flight hours: 11,000 total, 4,200 in this make and model, 205 in the last 90 days, 59 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 70° at 8 knots - Visibility: 20 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 81 °F, dew point 63 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: HNL ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Incident 19960808029579I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960808029579I), Aug 8, 1996: Doug DC951, Honolulu, HI, Minor damage. Narrative: on August 8, 1996, hawaiian airlines DC-9-51 aircraft N420EA nose landing gear collapsed during landing roll out. There were no injuries to the crew… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.