- Date
- March 12, 1991, 09:06 local (14:06 UTC)
- Place
- Jamaica, NY
- Injuries
- 2 minor, 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N730PLDouglas DC-8-62
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910312005259A
- Case key
- 36783
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
Improper preflight planning/preparation, in that the flight engineer miscalculated (misjudged) the aircraft's gross weight by 100,000 lbs and provided the captain with improper takeoff speeds; and improper supervision by the captain. Factors related to the accident were: improper trim setting provided to the captain by the flight engineer, inadequate monitoring of the performance data by the first officer, and the company management's inadequate surveillance of the operation.
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
Bfr flt, the flt eng (f/e) had calculated 'v' spds & horizontal stabilizer trim setting for takeoff, but neither the capt nor the 1st officer (f/o) had verified them. Drg rotation for takeoff, the capt noted that the forced needed to pull the yoke aft was greater than nml & that the acft would not fly (at that spd). Subsequently, he aborted the atmtd takeoff. Realizing the acft would not stop on the remaining rwy, he elected to steer it to the rgt to avoid hitting tfc on a hwy nr the dep end. The acft struck ILS equip; the lndg gear collapsed & all 4 engs tore away. Subsequently, the acft was destroyed by fire. Inv revealed the f/e had improperly computed the takeoff data. He had calculated the 'v' spds & horizontal stabilizer trim setting for 242,000 lbs; however, the actual takeoff wt was 342,000 lbs. Rotation spd (vr) for this wt was 28 KTS abv the spd that was used. Inv revealed shortcomings in the operator's flightcrew training program & questionable scheduling of qualified (but marginally experienced) crew members for the acdnt flt.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N730PL
- Reported as
- Douglas DC-8-62
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 46161
- Airframe hours
- 50,145
- Engine
- P&W JT3D-3B, 18,000 lbs thrust, turbo fan
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 121
- Operator
- Air Transport International, doing business as Ati
- Registered owner
- David M. Clark Trustee
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- AAIP · January 2, 2000
- Destination
- BRU · Brussels, Blgm, OF
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- JFK · John L Kennedy Intl, runway 4, 11,351 × 150 ft, macadam
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
- 39
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 12,800 total · 3,000 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 34 °F, dew point 18 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JFK, 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.