Amateur-built DHC-8-102 incident near Romulus, Michigan, February 20, 1997
On February 20, 1997 at about 3:27 pm local time, a amateur-built DHC-8-102, registered N828MA, was involved in an incident near Romulus, Michigan. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 26 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
a fractured fusion weld in the piston of the roll spoiler servoactuator, which allowed the plug at the base of the piston to separate and jam the piston. A factor relating to the incident was: the inadequate design of the airplane's roll spoiler servoactuator piston.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 20, 1997 · about 3:27 pm local time
- Place
- Romulus, Michigan · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 26 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-8-102
- Registration
- N828MA · no longer on the register · serial 333
- 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 said that after departure, 'the first officer needed excessive right wing down trim to maintain a wings level attitude. The left outboard roll spoiler indicated approximately one-half deployment on the PFCS (Powered Flight Controlled Surfaces).' The crew maintained control of the airplane with trim and control wheel input. The crew declared an emergency, returned to the airport, and landed the airplane without further incident. A postincident inspection revealed that the left outboard roll spoiler was 'deployed approximately half-way.' An examination and disassembly of the roll spoiler servoactuator revealed that a plug (PN A50993-1), which had been fusion-welded into the base of the piston (PN A50992-1), had separated and lodged itself between the base of the piston and the shims, restricting the piston's movement. Dowty Aerospace (the manufacturer) had recorded seven previous failures of fusion welds in pistons on DHC-8 roll spoiler servoactuators before this incident.
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: 8,400 hours in all; 3,525 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 7,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,466 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 18, 1997; 26 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 27,000 lb
- Seats: 39
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PW120A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Mesaba Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: DTW at 3:07 pm
- Destination: TYS Knoxville TN
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:27 pm from DTW, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 23 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N828MA the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.