ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 N129AA San Juan-Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (SJU)
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Status:Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date:Thursday 27 June 1985
Time:11:36 AST
Type:Silhouette image of generic DC10 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10
Operator:American Airlines
Registration: N129AA
MSN: 46996/270
First flight: 1978-12-16 (6 years 7 months)
Engines: 3 General Electric CF6-6K
Crew:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 13
Passengers:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 257
Total:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 270
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Aircraft fate: Repaired
Location:San Juan-Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (SJU) (   Puerto Rico)
Phase: Takeoff (TOF)
Nature:Domestic Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:San Juan-Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU/TJSJ), Puerto Rico
Destination airport:Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, TX (DFW/KDFW), United States of America
Flightnumber:AA633
Narrative:
After landing at San Juan, the aircraft was parked at the customs area, then was towed to gate 15 and loaded for the next flight. The push-back was such that the crew had to taxi to the general aviation parking area and turn around before proceeding to runway 08 for departure. When cleared for takeoff, the wind was from 160 deg at 11 gusting 22 knots. At aprx 120 knots on the takeoff roll, a loud rumbling sound occurred which increased rapidly, then the aircraft began to vibrate. At approx. the V1 speed of 141 knots, the captain rejected the takeoff using maximum braking. Unable to stop on the remaining runway, he angled the aircraft to the safest area. The aircraft stopped with its nose in a lagoon. Due to trees, water, aircraft attitude and one accidental disarming, only 4 of 8 emergency slides were used. A lab analysis indicated that the #7 tire had failed due to low inflation, most likely from FOD. During the abort, its companion tire failed from overload. Black marks on the taxiway revealed the #7 tire started losing pressure while the aircraft was taxiing.

Probable Cause:

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
LANDING GEAR,TIRE..FOREIGN OBJECT
LANDING GEAR,TIRE..LEAK
LANDING GEAR,TIRE..FAILURE,TOTAL

Contributing Factors:
OBJECT..APPROACH LIGHT/NAVAID
TERRAIN CONDITION..ROUGH/UNEVEN
TERRAIN CONDITION..WATER,ROUGH

Accident investigation:

Investigating agency: NTSB
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 1 year
Accident number: NTSB/AAR-86/01/SUM
Download report: Summary report

Classification:
Rejected takeoff
Foreign Object Debris
Tire failure
Runway excursion

Sources:
» NTSB/AAR-86/01/SUM


Photos

photo of DC-10-10-N129AA
accident date: 27-06-1985
type: McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10
registration: N129AA
photo of DC-10-10-N129AA
accident date: 27-06-1985
type: McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10
registration: N129AA
photo of DC-10-10-N129AA
accident date: 27-06-1985
type: McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10
registration: N129AA
photo of DC-10-10-N129AA
accident date: 27-06-1985
type: McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10
registration: N129AA
 

Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from San Juan-Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, TX as the crow flies is 3462 km (2164 miles).

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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