Boeing 727-232 accident near Salt Lake City, Utah, October 14, 1989
On October 14, 1989 at about 9:19 pm local time, a Boeing 727-232, registered N530DA, was destroyed in an accident near Salt Lake City, Utah (Salt Lake City airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 2 people had minor injuries; 17 others were unhurt. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A FIRE WHICH STARTED IN THE PASSENGER OXYGEN SYSTEM FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS. CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACCIDENT WAS THE FAILURE OF DELTA AIRLINES TO RECOGNIZE, ATTEND TO AND CORRECT REPEATED LEAKS IN THE OXYGEN SYSTEM.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 14, 1989 · about 9:19 pm local time
- Place
- Salt Lake City, Utah · Salt Lake City · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries; 17 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-232 · all 727-232s on the register
- Registration
- N530DA · no longer on the register · serial 21813
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE CREW HEARD A MUFFLED EXPLOSION & SAW FLAMES COMING FROM THE VENT NEAR SEAT 3-D WHILE ACFT WAS PARKKED AT GATE. LOCATION OF FIRE PREVENTED CREW FROM RETURNING TO COCKPIT TO NOTIFY CFR & ILLUMINATE EMERG FLOOR LIGHTING. PASSENGERS & CREW EVACUATED ACFT. SECOND OFFICER, LAST TO LEAVE, COULD NOT REACH REAR AIRSTAIRS & EXITED VIA EMERG WINDOW EXIT AFTER HAVING DIFFICULTY IN LOCATING AN EXIT BECAUSE OF SMOKE. A MECHANIC NOTED LOW PASSENGER OXYGEN SUPPLY DURING PREFLIGHT & REPLACED OXYGEN CYLINDERS. WHILE EXITING THE ELECTRICAL EQUIP BAY THE MECHANIC SAW A WHITE FLASH ENGULF THE OXYGEN SYSTEM FLOW CONTROL UNIT. HE ATTEMPTED TO HAVE CFR NOTIFIED OF THE FIRE USING A HAND HELD RADIO TO NO AVAIL. THE PASSENGER OXYGEN SYSTEM HAD 6 LOW OXYGEN QUANTITY MAINTENANCE WRITE-UPS DURING PREVIOUS 30 DAYS BUT WAS NOT 'FLAGGED' BY COMPANY AUTOMATED TREND ANALYSIS PROGRAM BECAUSE OF THE JOB TITLE OF THE PERSON ENTERING THE WRITE-UPS. INSPECTION OF DELTA'S FLEET REVEALED 35 OXYGEN SYSTEM LEAKS ON OTHER ACFT.
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: 15,000 hours in all; 5,000 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 70 in the last 30 days; 8,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 30,173 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, September 30, 1989; 150 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 185,200 lb
- Seats: 155
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-15A (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Destination: VEG Edmonton Canada OF
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 6 | ||
| Passengers | 1 | 11 |
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.