Amateur-built DHC-8-101/102 incident near Dothan, Alabama, April 22, 1988
On April 22, 1988 at about 8:35 pm local time, a amateur-built DHC-8-101/102, registered N804MX, suffered minor damage in an incident near Dothan, Alabama. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 24 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 22, 1988 · about 8:35 pm local time
- Place
- Dothan, Alabama · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 24 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-8-101/102 DHC-8-101/
- Registration
- N804MX · no longer on the register · serial 019
- 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 FLIGHT AT 12,000 FT, THE FLIGHT CREW OF THE DHC-8 OBSERVED A LOW OIL PRESSURE WARNING LIGHT. ABOUT FIVE SECONDS LATER, THE RIGHT ENGINE FIRE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. FIRE WAS CONFIRMED AND THE EXTINGUISHER DISCHARGED. THE FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED BUT FLARED UP AGAIN, WHEREUPON THE SECOND BOTTLE WAS FIRED. THE FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED AND A LANDING COMPLETED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. INSPECTION REVEALED BROKEN OIL LINES TO THE NUMBER 6 & 7 BEARINGS. FURTHER INVESTIGATION REVEALED FAILED LOW PRESSURE TURBINE BLADES DUE TO INTERNAL CORROSION. NEW SOLID BLADES ARE UNDER ENGINEERING EVALUATION ACCORDING TO THE MANUFACTURER.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,300 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,574 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, April 12, 1988; 79 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 33,000 lb
- Seats: 40
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PW120A (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ATL Atlanta GA at 8:04 pm
- Destination: VPS Ft.Walton Beach FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft; scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from DHN, 35 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 21 |
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.
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.