Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-82 incident near Savannah, Georgia, June 18, 1993
On June 18, 1993 at about 5:46 pm local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-82, registered N467AA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Savannah, Georgia (Savannah Municipal airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 133 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
LEAKAGE OF THE NUMBER 7 FUEL NOZZLE, WHICH RESULTED IN AN IN FLIGHT ENGINE FIRE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 18, 1993 · about 5:46 pm local time
- Place
- Savannah, Georgia · Savannah Municipal
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 133 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-82 · all DC-9-82s on the register
- Registration
- N467AA · registry record · serial 49597
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
APPROXIMATELY ONE MINUTE AFTER TAKEOFF, THE CREW OBSERVED LEFT ENGINE FIRE WARNING INDICATIONS IN THE COCKPIT. THE LEFT ENGINE POWER LEVER WAS RETARDED, AND A TURN TOWARDS THE AIRPORT WAS INITIATED. THE FIRE WARNING INDICATIONS ACTUATED INTERMITTENTLY UNTIL THE CREW SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE AND ACTIVATED THE ENGINE FIRE EXTINGUISHER. AN UNEVENTFUL LANDING WAS PERFORMED. GROUND PERSONNEL INFORMED THE CAPTAIN OF VISIBLE FIRE DAMAGE TO THE LEFT ENGINE, AND AN EMERGENCY EVACUATION WAS PERFORMED. AN INSPECTION OF THE LEFT ENGINE REVEALED A LEAK AT THE NO. 7 FUEL NOZZLE, WHICH WAS THE ORIGIN OF THE FIRE. A HOLE WAS BURNED IN THE DIFFUSER CASE, WHICH ALLOWED HOT GASES TO ESCAPE AND CONTACT OIL LINES. THIS RESULTED IN EXTENSIVE FIRE DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE AND COWLING.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,500 hours in all; 3,840 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 13,926 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme
- Maximum gross weight: 150,500 lb
- Seats: 149
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8-217-C (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: American Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Destination: DFW Dallas/Ft Worth TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 9, 9,003 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 pm from SAV, 3 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 127 |
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.