Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-82 accident near Romulus, Michigan, August 17, 1987
On August 17, 1987, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-82, registered N312RC, was destroyed in an accident near Romulus, Michigan (Detroit Metro Wayne Cnty airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 154 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- August 17, 1987
- Place
- Romulus, Michigan · Detroit Metro Wayne Cnty · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 154 people were killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9-82 · all DC-9-82s on the register
- Registration
- N312RC · no longer on the register · serial 48090
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The Safety Board's full report on this investigation is provided as Aviation Accident Report number AAR-88/05. To obtain a copy of this report, or to view the executive summary online, please see the Web site at http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/publictn.htm NORTHWEST FLT 255 (NW255) CRASHED AFTER TAKEOFF FM RWY 3C AT DETROIT METRO AIRPORT. WITNESSES SAID NW255 ROTATED FOR TAKEOFF 1200-1500 FT FROM THE END AND LIFTED OFF NR THE END OF THE 8500 FT RWY. AFTER LIFTOFF, THE WINGS ROCKED LT AND RT AND THE ACFT FAILED TO CLIMB NORMALLY. 18 FEET OF THE LT WING SEPARATED WHEN THE WING CONTACTED A LIGHT POLE 2760 FT BEYOND THE RWY END. THE ACFT ROLLED STEEPLY TO THE LEFT AND STRUCK POLES, A BLDG, AND AUTOMOBILES BEFORE CRASHING INTO A RAILROAD EMBANKMENT. THE ACFT WAS DESTROYED. THE EVIDENCE INDICATED THAT THE FLAPS AND SLATS WERE IN THE UP/RETRACT POSITION AND HAD NOT BEEN DEPLOYED FOR TKOF. NEITHER PLT RECITED THE ITEMS OF THE TAXI CKLIST. STALL WARNINGS WERE ANNUNCIATED BUT AN AURAL TKOF WARNING WAS NOT ANNUNCIATED BY THE CENTRAL AURAL WARNING SYSTEM (CAWS). IT WAS CONFIRMED THAT 28 VOLT DC PWR WAS NOT PROVIDED TO THE CAWS PWR SUPPLY #2. THE REASON FOR THE LOSS OF ELECTRICAL PWR WAS TRACED TO A CIRCUIT BRKR BUT NO MALF OF THE CB WAS FND. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, SEE NTSB/AAR-88/05.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: balloon
- Flight time: 20,859 hours in all; 9,459 in this make and model; 160 in the last 90 days; 87 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 14,928 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, August 15, 1987; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 149,500 lb
- Seats: 150
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-217 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: DTW Detroit MI
- Destination: PHX Pheonix AZ
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 3C, 8,500 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 300° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 148 | 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.