Boeing 747 incident near Los Angeles, California, May 12, 1984
On May 12, 1984 at about 4:56 am local time, a Boeing 747, registered FBPVS, suffered minor damage in an incident near Los Angeles, California (Los Angeles Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under foreign airline rules (Part 129). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 12, 1984 · about 4:56 am local time
- Place
- Los Angeles, California · Los Angeles Intl
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747 · all 747s on the register
- Registration
- FBPVS · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · foreign airline rules (Part 129)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING ROTATION THE #2 ENG SUSTAINED AN EXPLOSIVE RUPTURE OF ITS COMPRESSOR REAR FRAME(CRF). THE CREW OBSERVED A RAPID DROP IN THE #2 ENG PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS & THE ILLUMINATION OF THE #2 ENG THRUST REVERSERS 'UNLOCK AND IN TRANSIT' LITES. THE CREW DISCHARGED A FIRE BOTTLE. AFTER THE ENG WAS SHUT DOWN & THE FUEL DUMPED, THE CREW LANDED THE ACFT WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. THE ENG DAMAGE WAS PRIMARILY CONFINED TO AN AXIALLY RUPTURED OUTER CASING OF THE CRF. THE CRF HAD FRACTURED AS A RESULT OF A HIGH-STRESS(LOW-CYCLE) FATIGUE. THE FATIGUE ORIGINATED AT A ZONE OF MICROPOROSITY IN THE IGNITOR PAD AREA OF THE CRF OUTER CASING. TOTAL NUMBER OF CREW & PASSENGERS NOT REPORTED.
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
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 733,000 lb
- Seats: 396
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF6-50 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.