- Date
- November 21, 1991, 16:09 local (21:09 UTC)
- Place
- Buffalo, NY
- Injuries
- 29 uninjured
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N146CASaab-Fairchild SF-340A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 13, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19911121055439I
- Case key
- 37079
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
A fatigue fracture on the propeller shaft, that originated at a subsurface slag inclusion, which remained in the material used to manufacture the shaft.
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 flight crew detected vibration coming from the right propeller and made a decision to shut the engine down. During the shutdown process the propeller separated from the airplane. Examination of both portions of the failed propeller shaft revealed the shaft failed due to fatigue. Metallurgical examination found a slag inclusion just below the fracture surface. This defect occurred during the melting of the original ingot.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N146CA
- Reported as
- Saab-Fairchild SF-340A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 340A-146
- Airframe hours
- 6,698
- Engine
- GE CT7-5A2, 1,735 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Com Air Inc.
- Registered owner
- Wilmington Trust Company
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Transport
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · November 15, 1991 · 40 hours before
- Departed
- CVG · Cincinnati, OH
- Destination
- YYZ · Toronto
- Flight plan
- IFR
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 38
- Certificate
- 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
- 10,000 total · 3,000 in this make and model · 7,500 as pilot in command · 140 in the last 90 days · 80 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,100 ft broken
- Temperature
- 46 °F, dew point 41 °F
- Observed at
- BUF, 26 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.