Accident McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30CF EC-DEG,

ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 327789

Date:	Monday 13 September 1982
Time:	12:00
Type:	McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30CF
Owner/operator:	Spantax
Registration:	EC-DEG
MSN:	46962/238
Year of manufacture:	1977
Total airframe hrs:	15364 hours
Cycles:	4008 flights
Engine model:	General Electric CF6-50C1
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 50 / Occupants: 394
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed, written off
Category:	Accident
Location:	Málaga Airport (AGP) - Spain
Phase:	Take off
Nature:	Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi
Departure airport:	Málaga Airport (AGP/LEMG)
Destination airport:	New York-John F. Kennedy International Airport, NY (JFK/KJFK)
Investigating agency:	CIAIAC
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
Spantax Flight BX995 departed Madrid-Barajas at 09:36 on a charter flight to Málaga and New York. The DC-10 arrived at Málaga at 10:20 where 251 passengers embarked. The crew then taxied to the threshold of runway 14. Takeoff clearance was received at 11:58. During takeoff the copilot called out the 80 knots and 100 knots speeds. A short time before reaching V1 (162 kts), pieces of tread of a nose wheel tire started to detach. At or close to V1 a vibration was felt. The airplane continued to accelerate through VR. As the captain tried to rotate by applying up elevator, the vibration was of such magnitude that he feared that the plane might become uncontrollable after takeoff. He decided to abort the takeoff. At that point, with a maximum speed attained of 184 kts, there was 1295 m (4,250 feet) of runway left. The captain retarded the throttles and tried to select reverse thrust. The no. 3 throttle slipped from his hands, causing a power asymmetry. The airplane veered slightly to the left. The Dc-10 overshot the runway at a speed of 110 kts, colliding with an ILS building, causing engine number 3 to separate. The airplane went through a fence and crossed a highway were it damaged three vehicles. It then collided with a farming construction, causing three quarters of the right wing to break off, as well as the right horizontal stabilizer. The aircraft stopped 450 m (1,475 feet) past the end of runway 14. A fire erupted in the rear of the fuselage.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "The Commission determines the cause of the accident to be the fractional detachment of the retread of the right wheel of the nose gear, originating a strong vibration which could not be identified by the captain, leading hime into the belief that the aircraft would become uncontrollable in flight, and thus deciding to abandon the take-off over VR.
The decision of aborting the take-off, though not in accordance with the standard operation procedure, is in this case considered reasonable, on the base of the irregular circumstances that the crew had to face, the short period of time available to take the decision, the lack of training in case of wheel failure and the absence of take-off procedures when failure other than that of the engines occurs."

Accident investigation: