- Date
- November 15, 1988, 20:50 local (Nov 16, 1988, 02:50 UTC)
- Place
- Minneapolis, MN
- Injuries
- 106 uninjured
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N965VJMcdonnell Douglas DC9-31
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report June 11, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19881115068459I
- Case key
- 34702
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
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The failure of the left main landing gear tire carcass and the ingestion of the tire debris into the left engine which hindered normal operation.
Analysis
The scheduled commuter flt was boarded with passengers and acrew consisting of 3 flight attendants, the first officer and the captain for a flt to pittsburg, PA. After a gate release, the acft was taxied to rwy 29R and prepared for takeoff. The takeoff roll progressed normally until a point 4,200 feet from initiation. The crew reported a vibration and the left eng power diminished. The takeoff was aborted, but the acft speed at the time of the abort and rwy distance remaining was insufficient to avoid departing the end of the rwy. The acft became mired in the rain soaked terrain up to the axle. Post-incident exam of the left main gear tires indicated a failure of the tire carcass. The tires had been retreaded 300 and 244 landings respectively prior to the failure. The carcass however, had no records to show an operational or replacement history. The reason for the failure of the carcass was not determined. The cause of the initial power loss on the left eng was from injestion of tire debris.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N965VJ
- Reported as
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC9-31
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 47374
- Airframe hours
- 52,320
- Engine
- P&W JT8D-7, 14,000 lbs thrust, turbo jet
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Usair
- Registered owner
- Usair
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Departed
- MSP · Minneapolis, MN
- Destination
- PIT · Pittsburgh, PA
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- MSP · Minneapolis St Paul Intl, runway 29R, 8,202 × 150 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
- 52
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 23,000 total · 6,000 in this make and model · 14,000 as pilot in command · 240 in the last 90 days · 88 in the last 30 days · 7 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 350° at 19 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 500 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 37 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MSP
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 N965VJ · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.