Dassault-Breguet FALCON 900 N901B
20 January 1989 · South Bend, Indiana, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 20 January 1989 at about 13:14 local time, a Dassault-Breguet FALCON 900 registered N901B was involved in an accident near South Bend, Indiana, United States. 4 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 13:14
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- South Bend, Indiana, United States
- Nearest airport
- Michiana Regional (SBN)
- Coordinates
- 41.7209, -86.3309
- Aircraft
- Dassault-Breguet FALCON 900
- Registration
- N901B
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 3
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Executive/Corporate
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Philadelphia → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CHI89MA047
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Probable cause
FAILURE OF THE THRUST REVERSER ACTUATOR LINKS DUE TO A MANUFACTURING/DESIGN PROBLEM. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE ADVERSE RUNWAY CONDITIONS AND THE CROSSWIND.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
THE PLTS RPRTD THAT WHILE LNDG ON A SNOW & SLUSH CVRD RWY, THEY USED FULL REVERSE THRUST & MAX BRAKING WITH ANTI-SKID, BUT THE ACFT DID NOT DECELERATE. THEY SELECTED THE #2 BRAKE SYS WITHOUT ANTI-SKID. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE MAIN TIRES FAILED (BLEW-OUT) & THE ACFT SLID OFF THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RWY, COLLAPSING THE LEFT MAIN GEAR. INV REVEALED THAT BOTH THRUST REVERSER ACTUATOR LINKS ON THE #2 ENG HAD FAILED. WITH THESE FAILURES THE #2 ENG WOULD HAVE CONTD TO PROVIDE FWD THRUST,PROPELLING THE ACFT DWN THE RWY. (ON THIS MODEL OF ACFT, ONLY THE #2 ENG WAS EQUIPPED WITH REVERSE THRUST CAPABILITY.) METALLURGICAL EXAMS OF THE FWD ROD END FITTINGS OF BOTH REVERSE THRUST ACTUATOR LINKS (P/N 8140-06LK) REVEALED THE BEARING LOOPS HAD FAILED FROM OVERSTRESS. MANDATORY SERVICE BULLETIN (S/B) F900-78-1 WAS ISSUED ON 5/18/89 TO PROVIDE A SAFETY SYSTEM TO PREVENT ACTIVATION OF THE THRUST REVERSER ABOVE IDLE, WHILE THE AIRCRAFT IS ON THE GROUND. ALSO, MANDATORY S/B F900-78-2 WAS ISSUED ON 7/19/89 TO REINFORCE THE THRUST REVERSER ACTUATING MECHANISMS.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Dassault-Breguet FALCON accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 Jun 1989 | Dassault-Breguet FALCON 20 | Cartersville, Georgia, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 28 Oct 1990 | Dassault-Breguet FALCON 50 | Parkersburg, West Virginia, United States | DOW Chemical Company | No injuries | - |
| 18 Dec 1992 | Dassault-Breguet FALCON 10 | McCall, Idaho, United States | Manchester Group | Serious injuries | - |
| 12 May 1985 | Dassault-Breguet FALCON 50 | Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 17 Feb 1993 | Dassault-Breguet FALCON 10 | Aurillac, France | Conaero, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 17 Mar 1994 | Dassault-Breguet FALCON 900 | Detroit, Michigan, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Sep 1989 | Beechcraft A36TC | Greencastle, Indiana, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 5 Sep 1989 | Boeing 767-231 | Knox, Indiana, United States | Trans World Airlines Inc. | Minor injuries | - |
| 14 Jan 1989 | Piper PA-28-180 | Valparaiso, Indiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 29 Oct 1989 | Bell 47G-2A-1 | Plymouth, Indiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 22 Mar 1989 | Cessna 150L | Sellersburg, Indiana, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 26 Mar 1989 | Beechcraft 95-B-55 | Crothersville, Indiana, United States | Casebolt, FON | Minor injuries | - |