Boeing 757-225 incident near Terre Haute, Indiana, December 11, 1996
On December 11, 1996 at about 7:38 pm local time, a Boeing 757-225, registered N603AU, suffered minor damage in an incident near Terre Haute, Indiana. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 184 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
inadequate installation of electrical wiring for an audio entertainment system associated with Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) SA5537NM, and a subsequent short in the wiring. Factors relating to the accident were: inadequate design (installation instructions) by the STC holder (Hughes-Avicom International), and inadequate maintenance by company maintenance personnel.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 11, 1996 · about 7:38 pm local time
- Place
- Terre Haute, Indiana · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 184 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 757-225 · all 757-225s on the register
- Registration
- N603AU · no longer on the register · serial 22198
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Before departing on a scheduled passenger flight, a flight attendant noticed an electrical odor in the airplane's rear section. She advised the first officer, who consulted a mechanic. The mechanic found nothing wrong, and the flight departed a short time later. While en route, a flight attendant reported an electrical odor in the same area. After an investigation by the captain, the odor diminished, and the rear cabin temperature was lowered. Shortly after this action, smoke and fire were visible in the floor and side wall area. The captain declared an emergency and diverted to an alternate airport. During approach to the airport, the fire was extinguished, then an uneventful landing was made. Examination of the burned area revealed an audio-entertainment system cable had become shorted. Burning had resulted in minor damage to the airplane. Further investigation revealed that the cable had not been properly installed, and that the STC did not provide specific instructions for cable routing, except that it should be placed under a seat rail cover.
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: 21,416 hours in all; 419 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 231,000 lb
- Seats: 178
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce RB211-535 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PHX Phoenix AZ at 4:50 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 177 |
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.