Aerospatiale AS-355F1 incident near Lansing, Michigan, January 26, 1992
On January 26, 1992 at about 11:28 pm local time, a Aerospatiale AS-355F1 (helicopter), registered N101UM, suffered minor damage in an incident near Lansing, Michigan (Capital City airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A FATIGUE FAILURE OF A FUEL SYSTEM LINE FITTING DURING CRUISE FLIGHT.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 26, 1992 · about 11:28 pm local time
- Place
- Lansing, Michigan · Capital City · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale AS-355F1 · all AS-355F1s on the register
- Registration
- N101UM · no longer on the register · serial 5073
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT OF THE INCIDENT HELICOPTER PERFORMED AN EMERGENCY LANDING AFTER HE SMELLED SMOKE AND THE BAGGAGE COMPARTMENT FIRE WARNING/SMOKE DETECTOR LIGHT ILLUMINATED. A POST INCIDENT INSPECTION REVEALED A FATIGUE FAILURE OF A UNION JOINING A FUEL PIPE ASSEMBLY TO THE EXTERIOR OF THE RIGHT (#2) ENGINE CASE.
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: instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 8,586 hours in all; 2,366 in this make and model; 31 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days; 7,946 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,387 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 3, 1992; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,292 lb
- Seats: 5
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Allison 250-C20F (turboshaft); 0 hours total
- Operator: Corporate Jets INC.
The flight
- Departed from: NONE Ludington MI at 10:25 pm
- Destination: M132 Ann Arbor MI
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 190° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:51 pm from LAN, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
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.