Mcdonnell Douglas MD-82 incident near Fairbanks, Alaska, February 5, 1999
On February 5, 1999 at about 3:10 pm local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas MD-82, registered N934AS, was involved in an incident near Fairbanks, Alaska (Fairbanks International airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 138 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The restricted/delayed movement of the elevator flight control due to extremely cold weather conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 5, 1999 · about 3:10 pm local time
- Place
- Fairbanks, Alaska · Fairbanks International · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 138 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas MD-82
- Registration
- N934AS · no longer on the register · serial 49235
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The crew of a McDonnell Douglas MD-82 airplane, reported a partial flight control malfunction during takeoff. The captain stated that during the takeoff roll, the airplane's nose failed to rise as he applied aft control yoke pressure. When he applied an excessive amount of aft control yoke pressure, the nose rotated slowly, and the airplane assumed the desired pitch angle for takeoff. Prior to the incident flight, the incident airplane remained parked outside, overnight. During the night the air temperature went below minus 50 degrees F. Following the incident, the airplane underwent an extensive inspection and evaluation of the flight control system, with no flight control anomalies discovered by company maintenance personnel. The NTSB's FDR readout showed that during the initial phase of the incident takeoff roll, both elevators remained in a down position. As the takeoff roll progressed and the airspeed approached 150 knots, both elevators responded to the pilot's control column inputs, and the nose of the airplane rotated. The pilot's control column position was not a recorded parameter of the incident airplane’s FDR.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 15,070 hours in all; 8,444 in this make and model; 156 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 150,500 lb
- Seats: 148
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W JT8D-217 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Alaska Air Group, INC
The flight
- Departed from: FAI Fairbanks AK at 11:00 am
- Destination: ANC Anchorage AK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 19R, 5,400 ft by 60 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 0.5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: -47°F (-44°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:52 pm from FAI
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 133 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N934AS the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.