Douglas DC-10-10 incident near Colorado Spring, Colorado, October 30, 1991
On October 30, 1991 at about 5:03 pm local time, a Douglas DC-10-10, registered N1808U, suffered minor damage in an incident near Colorado Spring, Colorado (Colorado Springs Municipa airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 57 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
THE CAPTAIN'S INADEQUATE SUPERVISION AND THE COPILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. FACTORS WERE: THE CROSSWIND AND SNOW/ICE ON THE RUNWAY.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 30, 1991 · about 5:03 pm local time
- Place
- Colorado Spring, Colorado · Colorado Springs Municipa · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 57 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Douglas DC-10-10 · all DC-10-10s on the register
- Registration
- N1808U · registry record · serial 46605
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AS THE AIRCRAFT APPROACHED 50 KIAS ON THE TAKEOFF ROLL, IT DRIFTED RIGHT. THE FIRST OFFICER, WHO WAS MAKING THE TAKEOFF, CORRECTED WITH LEFT RUDDER. RIGHT DRIFT BECAME MORE PRONOUNCED AND HARD LEFT RUDDER WAS USED. THE CAPTAIN TOOK OVER, RETARDED ALL THREE THROTTLES, THEN ATTEMPTED TO REGAIN CONTROL BY USING ASYMMETRICAL THRUST. WHEN THIS FAILED, THE THROTTLES WERE RETARDED AND REVERSE THRUST APPLIED. POST INCIDENT INSPECTION DISCLOSED NO APPARENT DAMAGE. THE NEXT MORNING, A DIFFERENT CREW REJECTED THE TAKEOFF WHEN THE NO. 3 ENGINE FAILED. POST INCIDENT DISASSEMBLY AND INSPECTION OF THE ENGINE DISCLOSED METAL IN THE TAILPIPE, SAND AND MUD IN THE COMPRESSOR SECTION, AND A 13TH STAGE AND TWO 14TH STAGE COMPRESSOR BLADES BROKEN OFF, CAUSING EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO BOTH THE LOW AND HIGH PRESSURE TURBINES.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 17,727 hours in all; 289 in this make and model; 161 in the last 90 days; 57 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 2, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 430,000 lb
- Seats: 292
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF6-6 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: United Airlines
The flight
- Destination: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 17, 11,021 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 13 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 12°F (-11°C), dew point 9°F (-13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 10 | |||
| Passengers | 47 |
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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 DEN92IA007.