Accident McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 N39081,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 323521
 

Date:Tuesday 25 April 2000
Time:19:42
Type:Silhouette image of generic DC10 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30
Owner/operator:Continental Air Lines
Registration: N39081
MSN: 47861/75
Year of manufacture:1973
Total airframe hrs:13346 hours
Engine model:General Electric CF6-50C2
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 234
Aircraft damage: Substantial, repaired
Category:Accident
Location:Newark International Airport, NJ (EWR) -   United States of America
Phase: Take off
Nature:Passenger - Scheduled
Departure airport:Newark International Airport, NJ (EWR/KEWR)
Destination airport:Brussel-Zaventem Airport (BRU/EBBR)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
A McDonnell-Douglas DC-10-30, N39081, operating as Continental Airlines flight 60, was substantially damaged when an uncontained engine event occurred during takeoff from Newark International Airport (EWR), New Jersey. The 3-man cockpit crew, 11-person cabin crew, and 220 passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. An instrument flight rules flight plan had been filed for the flight, between Newark and Brussels Airport (BRU), Belgium.
Startup and taxi were normal, and during the taxi, the captain again briefed the cockpit crew, and included engine failures, as well as "non-reject" situations. The airplane lined up on runway 04L, and the captain applied takeoff power slowly and smoothly. At takeoff decision speed (V1), there was a loud explosion. A white "engine fail" light illuminated in front of the captain, and the number 1 engine N1 decreased by 30 percent. Number 2 and number 3 engines appeared normal.
The captain continued the takeoff, and the landing gear was raised. A red, left main landing gear warning light illuminated on the front panel. The airplane turned to a heading of 010, and slowly climbed to 3,000 feet. During the climb, an airframe vibration developed.
After level-off, the crew began to troubleshoot the emergency, and found that when the number 3 engine N1 was reduced, the vibration disappeared. Both the number 1 and the number 3 engines remained at reduced power, in relation to number 2, for the rest of the flight.
Air traffic control personnel provided vectors for a return to Newark. During the return, the crew dumped about 90,000 pounds of fuel. The crew also ran both 1-engine, and 2-engine inoperative checklists, and prepared data cards for both scenarios.
The captain flew the ILS glideslope down to a full-stop landing, on runway 04R at 20:16. After stopping on the runway, the brakes would not release, so the crew shut down the engines, and the passengers and crew disembarked through the normal deplaning doors. The airplane was later towed to a ramp.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "Stress rupture of the 2nd-stage low pressure turbine anti-rotation nozzle locks, resulting from inadequate nozzle lock design."

Accident investigation:
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Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: NYC00FA122
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 1 year and 7 months
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB

Location

Revision history:

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