Douglas DC-9-32 incident near Chantilly, Virginia, January 28, 1994
On January 28, 1994 at about 2:50 pm local time, a Douglas DC-9-32, registered N3339L, was involved in an incident near Chantilly, Virginia (Dulles airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 106 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flightcrew's failure to maintain directional control during a rejected takeoff. Contributing factors were the wet and icy runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 28, 1994 · about 2:50 pm local time
- Place
- Chantilly, Virginia · Dulles
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 106 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Douglas DC-9-32 · all DC-9-32s on the register
- Registration
- N3339L · no longer on the register · serial 901
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On January 28, 1994, Valujet Airlines flight 61, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32, N3339L, exited the runway during a rejected takeoff at Washington Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, Virginia. The airplane was damaged but there were no injuries to the 5 crewmembers or 101 passengers aboard. While on the takeoff roll on runway 01 right, the captain stated that as the airplane accelerated to about 80 knots, the airplane began to drift to the right of centerline. The captain elected to reject the takeoff and applied reverse engine thrust, however, the airplane exited off the left side of the runway. No additional information is available.
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
- Flight time: 10,957 hours in all; 1,432 in this make and model; 76 in the last 90 days; 69 in the last 30 days; 1,480 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 64,757 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 108,000 lb
- Seats: 118
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-7B (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Value Jet Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: IAD
- Destination: ATL Atlanta GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 1R, 11,500 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 31.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:54 pm from IA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 101 |
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.