British Aerospace 3201 accident near St Louis, Missouri, August 12, 1991
On August 12, 1991 at about 4:09 pm local time, a British Aerospace 3201, registered N339TE, was substantially damaged in an accident near St Louis, Missouri (Lambert-St Louis Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PILOT(S) TO FOLLOW THE CORRECT EMERGENCY PROCEDURE. FACTORS RELATED TO THIS ACCIDENT WERE: INADEQUATE SYSTEM DESIGN BY THE MANUFACTURER, WHICH ALLOWED HYDRAULIC LINE VIBRATION, FATIGUE FAILURE OF THE LINE, AND LOSS OF FLUID FROM THE NORMAL HYDRAULIC SYSTEM.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 12, 1991 · about 4:09 pm local time
- Place
- St Louis, Missouri · Lambert-St Louis Intl
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- British Aerospace 3201
- Registration
- N339TE · no longer on the register · serial 935
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG FLT, A HYDR LINE (PN 137311D1443) IN THE MAIN HYDR SYS FAILED. THE CAPT & 1ST OFFICER MADE NUMEROUS ATMTS TO EXTD THE LNDG GEAR BY USING THE EMERG CHECKLIST & ACFT FLT MANUAL. TWO OF 3 LNDG GEAR LEGS WERE EXTDD, BUT THE PLTS WERE UNABLE TO EXTD THE LEFT MAIN LNDG GEAR. SUBSEQENTLY, THE ACFT WAS DMGD DRG LNDG. THE HYDR LINE WAS CURVED & MEASURED ABT 15' FM END TO END. IT HAD FAILED AT THE BASE OF A FLARED FITTING. THIS ALLOWED HYDR FLUID IN THE MAIN SYS RESERVOIR TO BE PUMPED OVERBOARD. THE EMERG HYDR SYS HAD A 3 PSN SLCTR: NORMAL, FLAPS DOWN, GEAR DOWN. TESTS OF THE GEAR EXTN SYS REVEALED IT WORKED PROPERLY PER INSTRNS FM THE EMERG CHECKLIST, BUT WITH THE SLCTR IN THE NORMAL PSN, THE LINE FAILURE ALLOWED FLUID TO BE PUMPED FM THE EMERG RESERVOIR TO THE MAIN SYS. A METALLURGICAL EXAM REVEALED THE HYDR LINE HAD FAILED FM MULTIPLE FATIGUE ORIGINS ON THE OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF THE TUBE & ON DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSITE SIDES. LATER, BRITISH AEROSPACE ISSUED A SVC BULLETIN (23-JM-8170) TO REINFORCE THE HYDR LINE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,200 hours in all; 750 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: None (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 16,204 lb
- Seats: 21
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE 331-12UA (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Trans States Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: FSM Ft Smith AR at 1:30 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 3L, 11,918 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 4:13 pm from STL, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 5 |
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.