Airbus Industrie 300-600 incident near Miami, Florida, May 11, 1999
On May 11, 1999 at about 6:45 pm local time, a Airbus Industrie 300-600, registered N7082A, was involved in an incident near Miami, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 129 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Uncommanded rudder movement caused by a contaminant in the engagement valve solenoid that prevented disengagement of the autopilot yaw actuator and cross-connected wiring of the autopilot yaw actuator's main valve solenoids by the operator. Factors contributing to the incident were the lack of proper controls in the solenoid assembly process and the lack of procedures to detect miswired solenoids.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 11, 1999 · about 6:45 pm local time
- Place
- Miami, Florida
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 129 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airbus Industrie 300-600
- Registration
- N7082A · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During final approach to the airport and after the crew turned the autopilot off, American Airlines flight 916 began experiencing uncommanded rudder motion and high rudder pedal forces. The flight crew executed a go-around about 360 feet above ground level. Despite continued difficulties with the rudder, the flight crew was able to land the airplane successfully. Examination of the autopilot yaw actuator revealed two main findings: (1) the wiring to the two main valve solenoids had been cross connected, and (2) a foreign-particle contaminant in the green system engagement valve solenoid had prevented disengagement of the yaw actuator. Investigators found that when these two conditions exist, turn coordination system inputs can cause uncommanded rudder movements. Inspections of A300 and A310 airplanes after the incident resulted in the discovery of another American A300 with cross-connected solenoid wiring. American indicated that it had installed new autopilot actuator solenoids on this airplane and the rest of its A300 fleet. At the time the solenoids were installed, American's procedures did not include a check for proper installation of the solenoid wiring. The manufacturers of the airplane and the actuator have since incorporated new procedures to ensure that the solenoids are wired properly. As part of the investigation, numerous additional solenoids were examined for the presence of contaminants. Although contaminants were discovered on several other solenoids, they were smaller than that found on the incident airplane's engagement solenoid and did not affect solenoid functionality. Audits of the solenoid assembly process revealed the need to update production and inspection documentation and the need to include measures to prevent foreign particles from contaminating adjacent workstations. The manufacturer of the solenoids took corrective actions that included improving production facilities, implementing more stringent sampling and inspection procedures, and clarifying assembly instructions.
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
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
- Operator: American Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: Bogota
- Destination: MIA Miami FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: not reported
- Wind: from 200° at 8 knots
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 10 | |||
| Passengers | 119 |
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.