AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT REPORT: NATIONAL AIRLINES, INC., DC-10-10, N60NA, NEAR ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO, NOVEMBER 3, 1973

On November 3, 1973, at about 1640 m.s.t., National Airlines, Inc., Flight 27, was cruising at 39,000 feet, 65 nmi southwest of Albuquerque, New Mexico, when the No. 3 engine fan assembly disintegrated. Fragments of the fan penetrated the fuselage, the Nos. 1 and 2 engine nacelles, and the right wing. As a result, the cabin depressurized and one cabin window, which was struck by a fragment of the fan assembly, separated from the fuselage. A passenger, who was sitting next to the window, was forced through the opening and ejected from the aircraft. The body of the passenger has not been recovered. The aircraft was landed safely at Albuquerque International Airport. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the disintegration of the No. 3 engine fan assembly as a result of an interaction between the fan blade tips and the fan case.

• Corporate Authors:

  National Transportation Safety Board

  Office of Aviation Safety
  Washington, DC  United States  20594
• Publication Date: 1975-1-15

Media Info

• Pagination: 59 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Air transportation crashes; Aircraft; Crash investigation; Cruising flight; Engines; Failure; Passenger aircraft; Rotors; Turbines; Turbofan engines
• Uncontrolled Terms: Aircraft engines
• Old TRIS Terms: Axial flow turbines; Level flight
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00090468
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: NTSB-AAR-75-2
• Files: NTIS
• Created Date: May 29 1975 12:00AM