Boeing 727-257 incident near Detroit, Michigan, December 5, 1990
On December 5, 1990 at about 10:15 am local time, a Boeing 727-257, registered N715RC, suffered minor damage in an incident near Detroit, Michigan (Detroit airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 76 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE INADEQUATE DEICING PROCEDURES INSTITUTED BY COMPANY MANAGEMENT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 5, 1990 · about 10:15 am local time
- Place
- Detroit, Michigan · Detroit
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 76 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-257 · all 727-257s on the register
- Registration
- N715RC · registry record · serial 22019
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE INCIDENT AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED AN APU FIRE SHORTLY AFTER LANDING WHEN THE APU WAS STARTED. THE AIRPLANE HAD BEEN DEICED AT ITS POINT OF DEPARTURE WITH A GLYCOL AND WATER MIX. COMPANY POLICY CALLED FOR THE FLIGHT CREW TO SHUT OFF THE APU DURING DEICING. THE APU EXHAUST OUTLET IS ON TOP OF THE RIGHT WING NEAR THE FUSELAGE, AND WILL ACCEPT DEICE FLUID INTO THE EXHAUST AND SUBSEQUENTLY THE APU COMBUSTION CHAMBER IF DEICING FLUID IS DIRECTED INTO THE OPENING. GLYCOL IS HIGHLY FLAMMABLE ONCE THE WATER IS VAPORIZED/EVAPORATED. THE APU START FOLLOWING THE LANDING AT DETROIT IGNITED THE RESIDUAL GLYCOL IN THE APU, CAUSING THE EXHAUST STACK FIRE.
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: 830 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, December 2, 1990; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 197,000 lb
- Seats: 146
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT80-17 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Northwest Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: SEA Seattle WA at 7:30 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 300° at 14 knots
- Sky: overcast at 3,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:50 am from NWS
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 69 |
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.