Boeing 747 SP-09 N4522V
19 February 1985 · San Francisco, California, United States · Serious injuries
Summary
On 19 February 1985 at about 18:16 local time, a Boeing 747 SP-09 registered N4522V, operated by China Airlines, was involved in an accident near San Francisco, California, United States. 273 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. No probable cause statement is available for this record.
The record
- Date
- at 18:16
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Coordinates
- Not recorded
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747 SP-09
- Registration
- N4522V
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 4
- Operator
- China Airlines
- Operating rule
- Part 129: Foreign
- Purpose of flight
- Unknown
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Taipei → Los Angeles
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- IMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- DCA85AA015
People
2 people were seriously injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 273 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 271 |
Probable cause
The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.
Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.
Read the full NTSB narrative
WHILE ABV A CLOUD LAYER (TOP AT FL 370) NR THE JET STREAM, AUTOPLT WAS ENGAGED & WAS IN THE PERFORMANCE MNGMNT SYS (PMS)MODE. THE PMS PROVIDED PITCH GUIDANCE TO HOLD FL 410, ROLL GUIDANCE TO AILERONS & SPOILERS FOR ROLL CTL & AUTOTHROTTLE TO MAINT .85 MACH (254 KIAS). ACFT ENCOUNTERED CLR AIR TURBC & AIRSPEED BGN TO VARY BTN .84 & .88 MACH. PMS BGN MOVING THROTTLES FORE & AFT TO HOLD .85 MACH. DRG AUTOTHROTTLE ADJUSTMENTS, #4 ENG THRUST DECREASED & 'HUNG' AT APRX 1.0 EPR & AIRSPEED BGN DECREASING. FLT ENGINEER ATMTD TO MANUALLY RCVR THE #4 ENG THRUST, BUT DID NOT CLOSE THE BLEED AIR VLV BFR ADJUSTING THE #4 THROTTLE. THE #4 ENG REMAINED AT APRX 1.0 EPR. AS THE ACFT SLOWED, AUTOPLT TRIMMED TO HOLD ALT & HDG TIL THE PLT DISENGAGED IT. AT THAT TIME, ACFT ROLLED/YAWED RGT & ENTERED AN UNCTLD DSCNT INTO THE CLOUDS. AS IT BROKE OUT OF THE CLOUDS AT 11,000', CREW RCVRD & LVLD AT 9500'. DRG DSCNT/RCVRY, ACFT WAS DMGD BY ACCELLERATION FORCES & HI SPEED. THERE WAS EVIDENCE THE PLT WAS PREOCCUPIED WITH ENG PRBLM, DIDN'T MONITOR INSTRUMENTS & OVER-RELIED ON AUTOPLT.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Boeing 747 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Apr 1985 | Boeing 747-123 | Detroit, Michigan, United States | United Air Carriers | Minor injuries | - |
| 15 Dec 1985 | Boeing 747-136 | Boston, Massachusetts, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 28 Nov 1985 | Boeing 747-251F | Glen Ellyn, Illinois, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Sep 1985 | Boeing 747-130 | Jamaica, New York, United States | Transamerica Airlines | No injuries | - |
| 20 Dec 1984 | Boeing 747-200 | New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Mar 1986 | Boeing 747-122 | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | United Airlines | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 Mar 1985 | Mooney M20C | Apple Valley, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 22 Mar 1985 | Cessna 152 | Shafter, California, United States | Air Center International, Inc. | Minor injuries | - |
| 23 Mar 1985 | Cessna 150 | Banning, California, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 15 Oct 1985 | Rotorway EXECUTIVE | El Monte, California, United States | Frank Louis Lillo | No injuries | - |
| 29 Mar 1985 | Piper PA-30 | Death Valley, California, United States | Underwood Assoc. Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 2 Apr 1985 | Cessna 414 | Eagle Mountain, California, United States | - | Unknown | - |