Airbus Industrie A320-211 incident near Detroit, Michigan, March 18, 1996
On March 18, 1996 at about 12:00 pm local time, a Airbus Industrie A320-211, registered N340NW, was involved in an incident near Detroit, Michigan. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 110 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
a defective diode in the number two stabilizer actuator that produced an intermittent loss of electrical motor power during transient, closed loop control of the actuator. A factor was the intermittent open circuit in the elevator servo controller electrovalve coil.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 18, 1996 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Detroit, Michigan · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 110 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airbus Industrie A320-211 · all A320-211s on the register
- Registration
- N340NW · registry record · serial 372
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The captain reported that the crew leveled at flight level 370 and received an elevator aileron computer (ELAC) number two pitch fault message. The message cleared itself. A few minutes later they received servo fault message. The 'pitch jumped +/- 100 feet.' The crew descended to flight level 350. During the level off they received an ELAC number one pitch fault message. The crew declared an emergency and landed uneventfully. The aircraft maintenance log revealed a similar occurrence on the previous flight. Investigation revealed an intermittent fault in the elevator servo controller electrovalve coil and a defective diode in the electronic module for one of the stabilizer actuators. The defective diode produced an intermittent loss of electrical motor power during transient, closed loop control of the actuator.
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: 7,774 hours in all; 3,201 in this make and model; 191 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 14,500 lb
- Seats: 156
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Cfm CFM56-5-A1 (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DTW MI at 4:10 pm
- Destination: FLL Fort Lauderdale FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 5,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 104 |
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.