Boeing 727-122 incident near Fort Wayne, Indiana, January 25, 1987
On January 25, 1987 at about 7:39 pm local time, a Boeing 727-122, registered N7015U, suffered minor damage in an incident near Fort Wayne, Indiana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 6 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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
- January 25, 1987 · about 7:39 pm local time
- Place
- Fort Wayne, Indiana · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 6 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-122 · all 727-122s on the register
- Registration
- N7015U · no longer on the register · serial 18307
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AIRCRAFT EXTERIOR SKIN FAILED IN FATIGUE WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT. THE AIRCRAFT LOST CABIN PRESSURE AND THE PASSENGER OXYGEN MASKS AUTOMATICALLY DEPLOYED. THE FLIGHT CREW DONNED OXYGEN MASKS, DECLARED AN EMERGENCY TO ATC AND DESCENDED TO 10,000 FT. THE AIRCRAFT DIVERTED TO A SUITABLE AIRPORT AND LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 13,047 hours in all; 5,841 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 54,622 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 162 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 132,500 lb
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-7B (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: United Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: CMH Columbus OH
- Destination: ORD Chicago IL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 |
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.