Continental Airlines Flight 603
|
A Continental Airlines DC-10-10, sister to the crashed aircraft | |
| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | March 1, 1978 |
| Summary | The left main landing gear collapsed during an aborted takeoff, after three tires failed on that gear |
| Site | Runway 6R, Los Angeles International Airport |
| Passengers | 186 |
| Crew | 14 |
| Injuries (non-fatal) | 31 |
| Fatalities | 4 |
| Survivors | 196 |
| Aircraft type | McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 |
| Operator | Continental Airlines |
| Registration | N68045 |
| Flight origin | Los Angeles International Airport |
| Destination | Honolulu International Airport |
Continental Airlines Flight 603 was a scheduled McDonnell Douglas DC-10 flight between Los Angeles International Airport and Honolulu International Airport. On March 1, 1978, it crashed during an aborted takeoff, resulting in the deaths of four passengers.
Aircraft
The aircraft involved in the accident was a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10, registered N68045, which had made its first flight in 1972.[1]
Accident
The aircraft began its take-off from Los Angeles International Airport at approximately 9:25am. During that take-off roll, the recapping tread of the #2 tire on the left main landing gear, separated from the tire and the resulting overload caused that tire to blowout. That in turn, imposed an overload on the #1 tire on the same axle, resulting in a second blowout almost immediately after the first blowout. Shrapnel from the rims of the failed tires then damaged the #5 tire on the left main gear, causing it to also blowout.
Although the captain initiated the abort procedure at 4 knots below V1 speed, it became apparent the plane could not stop within the confines of the runway. That was the direct result of the partial loss of braking power following the failure of the three tires on the left main gear, and also because the runway was wet. The captain deliberately directed the plane to go off the end of the right half of the runway, because he did not want to collide with the approach light stanchions, which were positioned immediately beyond the end of the center of the runway. About 100 ft. beyond the end of the runway, the left main gear broke through the non-load bearing pavement, which caused it to fail rearward. Portions of the failed gear punctured fuel tanks in the left wing, immediately starting a fuel-fire on the left side.[2]
The plane slid to a stop approximately 664 feet beyond the departure end of the runway. Of the 186 passengers and 14 crew on board, 2 passengers were burned to death during evacuation.[3] Moreover, 28 passengers and 3 crew members were seriously injured during the evacuation, of whom 2 died about 3 months later of their injuries. Because 49 CFR 830.2, at the time, stated only deaths within 7 days of the accident, should be listed in the official NTSB report, it did not include those later fatalities.[4]
Continental flight 603 was to be the last (retirement) flight of Captain Eugene Hersche.[3]
NTSB findings
During its investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found the #2 tire failed because it threw off its (recapped) tread. Then, the #1 tire failed because it was overloaded and had fatigue in its ply structure. Then, the #5 tire failed, because it was hit with shrapnel from the rim of either the #2 or the #1 tire. The failure of that third tire on the left main gear, probably contributed to the gear breaking through the non-load bearing pavement beyond the end of the runway, which in turn caused the gear to fail and puncture the fuel tanks. Additionally, the NTSB stated: "The tires on the aircraft may have been operated in the overdeflected condition, since the average inflation pressure was less than the optimum pressure for maximum gross weight."[5]
The NTSB made recommendations to the FAA, which included a prohibition of mounting on the same axle, different models of tires which had different load-bearing characteristics and also that greater load-bearing characteristics be required in tires manufactured in the future.[4]
After the investigation of this accident was completed, the Federal Aviation Administration mandated changes to the design of evacuation slides to make them have more capacity and inflate at a quicker speed.[6]
References
- ↑ "Accident description - N68045". http://aviation-safety.net. Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved October 16, 2013. External link in
|website=(help) - ↑ "AAAR-79-01" (PDF). NTSB. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
- 1 2 Berg, Tom (February 28, 2008). "Still surviving the crash of Flight 603". Orange County Register.
- 1 2 "Aircraft Accident Report AAR-79-1" (PDF). NTSB. synopsis, sec. 1.2, and footnote 3. Retrieved 2014-06-08.
- ↑ "Aircraft Accident Report AAR-79-01" (PDF). NTSB, page 40,. Retrieved 2015-06-22.
- ↑ "Continental Airlines Flight 603, McDonnell Douglas DC-10, N68045 - Resulting Safety Initiatives". Federal Aviation Administration. September 27, 2013.
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