Boeing 727-22 incident near Denver, Colorado, December 20, 1990
On December 20, 1990 at about 3:02 am local time, a Boeing 727-22, registered N40486, suffered minor damage in an incident near Denver, Colorado. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 125 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF AN ENGINE BEARING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 20, 1990 · about 3:02 am local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 125 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-22 · all 727-22s on the register
- Registration
- N40486 · registry record · serial 18848
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF, AS THE AIRCRAFT WAS CLIMBING THROUGH 800 FEET AGL, THE NUMBER ONE ENGINE FAILED. THE CAPTAIN SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE AND ELECTED TO CONTINUE FLIGHT TO DENVER WHERE HE LANDED WITHOUT INCIDENT. ENGINE DISASSEMBLY REVEALED BEARING FAILURE DUE TO A CRACK IN THE NUMBER SIX BEARING OUTER RACE. THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF TURBINE FAILURE. UNCONTAINED PENETRATION OCURRED AT THE 2:30, 5:30, AND 6:30 POSITIONS.
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
What happened, in order
- LOSS OF ENGINE POWER(TOTAL) - MECH FAILURE/MALF
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 13,700 hours in all; 3,800 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 10,900 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 152,500 lb
- Seats: 126
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-7 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Continental Airlines
- Operating certificate: in the vicinity
The flight
- Departed from: COS Colorado Spring CO at 2:59 am
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 2:50 am from COS, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 7 | |||
| Passengers | 118 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DEN91IA028.