Mitsubishi MU2B-20 accident near Nashville, Tennessee, January 23, 1990
On January 23, 1990 at about 8:06 am local time, a Mitsubishi MU2B-20, registered N40RP, was substantially damaged in an accident near Nashville, Tennessee (Nashville Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
INADEQUATE MAINTENANCE ADJUSTMENT OF THE LANDING GEAR SYSTEM WHICH RESULTED IN THE JAMMING OF THE LEFT GEAR DOOR.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 23, 1990 · about 8:06 am local time
- Place
- Nashville, Tennessee · Nashville Int'L · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mitsubishi MU2B-20 · all MU2B-20s on the register
- Registration
- N40RP · registry record · serial 139
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER ARRIVING AT THE DESTINATION THE LANDING GEAR COULD NOT BE EXTENDED. THE AIRPLANE WAS FLOWN BACK TO ITS BASE WHERE A GEAR UP LANDING WAS PERFORMED. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED THAT THE LEFT GEAR DOOR DID NOT UNLOCK. THE EMERGENCY EXTENSION SYSTEM FAILED TO OPERATE AS A RESULT OF EITHER THE FAILURE OF THE CLUTCH ACTUATOR TO RESET AFTER THE LAST RETRACTION OR SLIPPAGE OF THE CLUTCH. THE PILOT'S REPORT STATED THAT THE DIRECTOR OF MAINTENANCE INDICATED THAT THE ACCIDENT COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED BY MORE FREQUENT LUBRICATION OF THE CLUTCH.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,200 hours in all; 2,700 in this make and model; 300 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,211 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 7, 1990; 34 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,930 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE 331-1 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Transportation America CORP.
The flight
- Departed from: BNA at 6:04 am
- Destination: MEM Memphis TN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 20R, 7,700 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Wind: from 200° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:02 am from BNA, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 N40RP 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.