Boeing 757-200ER incident near Jamaica, New York, September 13, 1993
On September 13, 1993 at about 12:55 pm local time, a Boeing 757-200ER, registered N757NA, was involved in an incident near Jamaica, New York. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 85 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE FAILURE OF THE LEFT HYDRAULIC PRESSURE SWITCH, WHICH CAUSED THE LEFT YAW DAMPER MODULE TO BECOME INOPERATIVE RESULTING IN UNCOMMANDED RUDDER MOVEMENTS DURING FLIGHT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 13, 1993 · about 12:55 pm local time
- Place
- Jamaica, New York · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 85 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 757-200ER · all 757-200ERs on the register
- Registration
- N757NA · registry record · serial 24567
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING CRUISE FLIGHT, A RUDDER RATIO WARNING LIGHT APPEARED, FOLLOWED BY UNCOMMANDED RIGHT RUDDER MOVEMENT AND LEFT AILERON INPUT. THE AIRPLANE REMAINED UNDER CONTROL AND THE CREW COUNTERACTED THE RUDDER MOVEMENT MANUALLY. THE CAPTAIN ELECTED TO ABORT THE FLIGHT AND LANDED SAFELY AT THE DEPARTURE AIRPORT. THE RUDDER RATIO WARNING WAS DISPLAYED ON TWO SUBSEQUENT FLIGHTS, DESPITE REPEATED ATTEMPTS TO RESOLVE THE DISCREPANCY. AFTER THE FOURTH WARNING WAS DISPLAYED IN ABOUT TWO MONTHS, AN EXAMINATION OF THE LEFT YAW DAMPER MODULE REVEALED A MALFUNCTION IN THE LEFT HYDRAULIC PRESSURE SWITCH. THE UNIT WAS REMOVED AND REPLACED. NO FURTHER INCIDENTS INVOLVING A RUDDER RATIO WARNING WERE REPORTED.
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: 19,300 hours in all; 2,300 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 3,000 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,274 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, August 31, 1993; 184 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 250,000 lb
- Seats: 233
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce RB211-535E4 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: North American Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: JFK at 8:55 am
- Destination: SFO San Francisco CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 13,000 ft; scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:50 pm from JFK
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 8 | |||
| Passengers | 77 |
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.