Mcdonnell Douglas MD-83 accident near East Granby, Connecticut, November 12, 1995
On November 12, 1995 at about 5:55 am local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas MD-83, registered N566AA, was substantially damaged in an accident near East Granby, Connecticut (Bradley International airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person had minor injuries; 77 others were unhurt. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the flightcrew's failure to maintain the required minimum descent altitude until the required visual references identifiable with the runway were in sight. Contributing factors were the failure of the BDL approach controller to furnish the flightcrew with a current altimeter setting, and the flightcrew's failure to ask for a more current setting. (NTSB Report AAR-96/05 adopted 11/13/96)
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 12, 1995 · about 5:55 am local time
- Place
- East Granby, Connecticut · Bradley International
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 77 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas MD-83
- Registration
- N566AA · registry record · serial 49348
- 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 airplane impacted trees, then an ILS antenna as it landed short of the runway on grass, even terrain during a night VOR approach in strong, gusty wind conditions. At the time of the accident, the indicated altitude (height above airport elevation) that the airplane's QFE altimeter was indicating was about 76 feet too high (based on the altimeter setting received at 0030), resulting in the airplane being 76 feet lower than indicated on the primary altimeters. Because the flightcrew knew that the atmospheric pressure was falling rapidly, they should have requested a current altimeter setting from the approach controller when was not given, as required, upon initial radio contact. Although the flightcrew did not use the most current QNH setting they had available (29.40 inches of Hg.) in the standby altimeter, this error did not affect the accident sequence of events because the flightcrew had the correct, but outdated, QFE setting (29.23 inches Hg.) in the altimeters they were using when the accident occurred. If the first officer had monitored the approach on instruments until reaching minimum descent altitude (MDA) and delayed his search for the airport until after reaching the MDA, he would have been better able to notice and immediately call the captain's attention to the altitude deviation below the MDA.
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, flight engineer, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,000 hours in all; 4,200 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,100 hours in all; 167 in the last 90 days; 60 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: August 19, 1995
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-219 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ORD Chicago IL at 4:05 am
- Destination: BDL Windsor Locks CT
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 15, 6,846 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 170° at 25 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,800 ft; scat at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:51 am from BDL, 3 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 72 |
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.