British Aerospace 3101 incident near Baltimore, Maryland, June 26, 1989
On June 26, 1989 at about 10:16 pm local time, a British Aerospace 3101, registered N849JS, suffered minor damage in an incident near Baltimore, Maryland (Baltimore/Washington airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 13 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL TO PROPERLY TORQUE THE POWER CONNECTION AT THE AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM FUSE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 26, 1989 · about 10:16 pm local time
- Place
- Baltimore, Maryland · Baltimore/Washington · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 13 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- British Aerospace 3101
- Registration
- N849JS · registry record · serial 812
- Damage
- Minor 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 TOUCHDOWN, A PASSENGER INFORMED THE FLT CREW OF SMOKE AND SPARKS COMING FROM THE PANEL BEHIND THE CAPTAIN'S SEAT. THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM AND ENGINE WERE SHUT DOWN AND PASSENGERS WERE DEPLANED AS A PRECAUTION. INSPECTION REVEALED A SHORT AT THE AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM POWER CABLE/FUSE CONNECTION AT THE STATION 130 ELECTRICAL PANEL. THE PANEL WAS SCHEDULED TO BE INSPECTED EVERY 3600 HOURS. TOTAL ACFT TIME WAS 2117 HOURS. THE AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM WAS A POST-PRODUCTION ADD-ON SYSTEM.
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; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,800 hours in all; 2,200 in this make and model; 7,425 as pilot in command; 1,574 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,119 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 15,212 lb
- Seats: 21
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE-331 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Jetstream International
The flight
- Departed from: BDR Bridgeport CT at 8:55 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 15, 9,519 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 11 |
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.