Airbus Industrie A319-111 incident near Denver, Colorado, February 16, 2007
On February 16, 2007 at about 7:35 pm local time, a Airbus Industrie A319-111, registered N927FR, suffered minor damage in an incident near Denver, Colorado (Denver Intl airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Fracturing of the aircraft windscreens due to impact with foreign object debris. Contributing to the event was the high, gusty surface winds.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 16, 2007 · about 7:35 pm local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Denver Intl · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airbus Industrie A319-111 · all A319-111s on the register
- Registration
- N927FR · no longer on the register · serial 2209
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the captain, the airplane had just departed and was making a turn to a heading of 270 degrees when they noticed the first officer's windshield cracking and beginning to arc. The captain alerted Air Traffic Control that they were returning to the airport and noticed that his windshield was also cracking, but not arcing. The first officer's windscreen stopped arcing and the flight crew landed the airplane without further incident. During the course of the afternoon, 14 airplanes experienced 26 fractured windshields. One flight crew reported that during the landing roll they "heard a loud thump" and observed the first officer's window "spider web." They did not observe anything impacting the windscreen. Another flight crew reported taxiing through "dirt and dust being blown around." Examination of the windshields revealed that the impact markings on all 26 windshields were the result of impact with foreign object debris (FOD). No pre-impact anomalies were noted with any of the windshields. Winds at the time of the event were reported as 280 degrees to 030 degrees with sustained winds between 28 and 36 knots. Wind gusts as high as 44 knots were recorded.
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; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,950 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, December 1, 2006
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Cfm International CFM56 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Cfm International CFM56 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Frontier Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Denver CO at 7:30 pm
- Destination: SFO San Francisco CA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 34L, 16,000 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 28 knots, gusting 36
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; a few clouds at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
- Observation at 7:39 pm from KDEN, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N927FR the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.