Boeing 727-225 accident near Loudon County, Virginia, January 17, 1986
On January 17, 1986 at about 11:51 pm local time, a Boeing 727-225, registered N802EA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Loudon County, Virginia (Dulles Int'L Airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 131 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. 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
- January 17, 1986 · about 11:51 pm local time
- Place
- Loudon County, Virginia · Dulles Int'L Airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 131 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-225 · all 727-225s on the register
- Registration
- N802EA · registry record · serial 22433
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE RT MAIN LNDG GEAR WOULD NOT EXTEND FOR LNDG AT WASH NATL ARPT. THE LNDG WAS ABORTED AND THE CREW ATTEMPTED TO CORRECT THE SITUATION BUT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL. AN EMERGENCY GEAR-UP LNDG WAS MADE AT DULLES INTERNATL ARPT. THE CREW AND PASSG EVACUATED WITHOUT INJURY. POST ACC EXAM SHOWED THAT THE RT DOWNLOCK LINK BEARING HAD CORRODED AND SEIZED; BOEING PART #BACB10B107J. THERE IS NO EXTERNAL PROVISION FOR LUBRICATION OF THIS PART AND NO REQUIRMENT FOR DISASSEMBLY TO INSPECT OR LUBRICATE. AN 'INSTALLED' INSPECTION WAS DONE AT 'A' CHECKS EACH 130 HRS AND 'C' CHECKS EVERY 36 DAYS. THE MOST RECENT WAS AN 'A' CHECK ON 10/28/85.
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; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,758 hours in all; 2,324 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 16,558 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, October 28, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 172,000 lb
- Seats: 134
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-7 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Eastern Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: MIA Miami FL
- Destination: DCA Washington DC
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 19R, 11,501 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 124 |
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 N802EA 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.