Boeing B-727-61 N530KF

Summary

On 17 October 2000 at about 18:20 local time, a Boeing B-727-61 registered N530KF was involved in an incident near Wood Dale, Illinois, United States. 108 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

17 October 2000 at 18:20

Classification

Incident

Location

Wood Dale, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

O'Hare International Airport (ORD)

Coordinates

41.9599, -87.9796

Aircraft

Boeing B-727-61

Registration

N530KF

Category

Airplane

Engines

3

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Detroit → Chicago

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Not Reported

NTSB number

CHI01IA016

Nobody was injured.

Inadequate overhaul of the flap segment that allowed for corrosion and debonding that resulted in the flap segment departing the airplane during the approach. Factors relating to this incident were insufficient information provided to the overhaul facility by the airplane manufacturer.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

A U. S. Marshals Service employee, who was seated on the left side, middle section of the airplane's passenger cabin, said, "I was observing the ground area looking down and aft across the wing. The wing flaps were partially deployed when I observed a large piece of the flap area to rise and leave the a/c and disappear. The flaps continued down and I could not see the particular area the piece left from, from my position any longer." On landing, it was discovered that a 6-foot long, 16-inch wide outboard section of the aft segment of the left inboard, segmented fowler flap was missing. The segment was located at a residence 2 miles west of the airport. An examination of the flap segment revealed that the anodized layer was incomplete on the segment spar and a required oxide layer was not present. The area showed corrosion and the degrading of the bond resulting in separation between the honeycomb and the aft side of the segment spar. The flap segment had been in service since its overhaul in October 1993 and had approximately 5,000 hours. Overhaul facility instructions did not specify a maximum area of the flap segment's honeycomb core that could be debonded during the overhaul. Manufacturer's repair manuals did specify a maximum size for repair of the honeycomb core in the inboard and outboard trailing edge fore flap, but none of the figures in the manual that was in effect at the time of the overhaul covered repair to the honeycomb core for the aft flap segment. A current version of the manufacturer's repair manuals specifies the maximum size for the repair of the trailing edge aft flap segment that includes the honeycomb core.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.