Boeing 727-251 incident near Atlanta, Georgia, December 4, 1984
On December 4, 1984 at about 3:15 pm local time, a Boeing 727-251, registered N264US, suffered minor damage in an incident near Atlanta, Georgia (Hartsfield). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 99 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 4, 1984 · about 3:15 pm local time
- Place
- Atlanta, Georgia · Hartsfield
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 99 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-251 · all 727-251s on the register
- Registration
- N264US · registry record · serial 19983
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING CRUISE FLT ELECTRICAL FIRE ERUPTED IN THE CIRCUIT BOARD AND ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS OF THE TEMP CONTROL UNIT FOR THE REAR GALLEY OVEN. ASSOCIATED CIRCUIT BREAKER OPENED, ELECTRICAL POWER TO GALLEY WAS TURNED OFF AND WITHIN MINUTES THE UNIT WAS COOL TO TOUCH. UNSCHEDULED LANDING WAS MADE. MANUFACTURER OF UNIT REPORTEDLY IS NO LONGER IN BUSINESS. OVERHEATED OVEN TEMP CONTROL CIRCUITRY IS ENCLOSED IN METAL BOX. AIRLINE REPORTED THIS FAILURE HAS BEEN A CHRONIC PROBLEM AND ON 12/7/84 BEGAN TO RETROFIT REMAINING UNITS WITH A CIRCUIT MODIFICATION.
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, commercial pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,805 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 142,000 lb
- Seats: 134
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TPA Tampa FL
- Destination: ORD Chicago IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:48 pm from ATL, 50 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 92 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ATL85IA047.