Boeing 747-251F incident near Glen Ellyn, Illinois, November 28, 1985
On November 28, 1985 at about 4:45 pm local time, a Boeing 747-251F, registered N619US, suffered minor damage in an incident near Glen Ellyn, Illinois. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- November 28, 1985 · about 4:45 pm local time
- Place
- Glen Ellyn, Illinois · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747-251F · all 747-251Fs on the register
- Registration
- N619US · no longer on the register · serial 21321
- 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 CLIMB A BANG WAS HEARD AND THE AIRCRAFT SHUDDERED. THE CREW STATED THAT THE NUMBER THREE ENGINE OIL PRESSURE AND OIL QUANTITY INDICATED LOW. THE FIRE WARNING LIGHT AND BELL ACTIVVATED. THE ENGINE WAS SHUT DOWN AND THE AIRCRAFT LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. POSTFLIGHT INSPECTION REVEALED THE OUTBOARD COWLING OF THE NUMBER THREE ENGINE HAD SEPARATED. THE COWLING WAS FOUND IN A SUBURB TEN MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE AIRPORT. ENGINE TEARDOWN REVEALED A CRACK IN A VENT LINE STRUT IN THE DIFFUSER AREA ALLOWING BLEED AIR TO IGNITE OIL IN THE NUMBER THREE BEARING AREA. PRESSURE FORCED THE FIRE TO VENT THROUGH THE COMPARTMENT BREATHER AIR TUBE DISINTEGRATING THE MAIN BEARING BREATHER TUGE ELBOW. THE FORCE OF THE EXPLOSION AT THE DISINTEGRATING ELBOW BLEW THE OUTBOARD COWLING OFF.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,912 hours in all; 831 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 23,296 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 710,000 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D-3 SER (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ORD Chicago IL
- Destination: MSP Minneapolis MN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:50 pm from ORD, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 |
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.