Boeing MD-88 incident near Atlanta, Georgia, November 7, 2012
On November 7, 2012, a Boeing MD-88, registered N908DE, was involved in an incident during initial climb near Atlanta, Georgia. It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 147 people were on board or involved. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The 4th stage turbine blade separation that resulted in an uncontained release of low pressure turbine blade material was Delta Air Lines' repair process for the turbine blades' tip shrouds. It was not possible to identify the part of the repair process that led to the premature wear of the blade's tip shoud and subsequent separation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 7, 2012
- Place
- Atlanta, Georgia · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 147 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Boeing MD-88
- Registration
- N908DE · no longer on the register · serial 53417
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A Delta Air Lines Boeing (previously McDonnell Douglas) MD-88 airplane, N908DE, experienced an uncontained 4th stage turbine blade separation and loss of power from the No. 1 (left) engine, a Pratt & Whitney JT8D-219, as the airplane was climbing through FL 240 after departing from the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Atlanta (ATL), Georgia. The pilots reported hearing a loud bang and the indications on the No. 1 engine's rpm and engine pressure ratio gages dropped while the indication on the exhaust gas temperature gage increased. The pilots retarded the No. 1 engine's power lever to idle and noted that the engine continued to run. The pilots declared an emergency and requested to return to ATL. While enroute back to ATL, the pilots shut down the No. 1 engine after the oil quantity had decreased to near zero and the oil pressure was less than 10 pounds per square inch. The airplane returned to ATL for a single-engine landing without further incident. The examination of the airplane revealed a large hole in the bottom of the No. 1 engine's cowl coincident with where the engine's fan duct was ruptured. The disassembly and examination of the No. 1 engine revealed all of the 4th stage turbine blades were fractured transversely across the airfoil adjacent to the blade root platform. There was one 4th stage turbine blade that had a flat, blue-colored, elliptical-shaped area on the fracture surface on the convex (suction) side of the airfoil that was identified by the NTSB's Materials Laboratory as a high-cycle fatigue (HCF) fracture. HCF fractures at that location on JT8D-219 4th stage turbine blades are consistent with wear on the blade tip shroud notches that cause an increase in the stresses in the airfoil. There is an airworthiness directive that requires an inspection of JT8D-219 4th stage turbine blades for shroud notch wear, however the incident occurred prior to the blades having accumulated enough time in service to have required the blades to be inspected. All of the 4th stage turbine blades had the tip shroud notches repaired at Delta's turbine blade shop prior to installation in the engine. Delta reported that they had seen an increase in the number of JT8D-219 4th stage turbine blade fracture incidents, almost all that involved blades that had been repaired in their blade repair shop. As a result of the number of JT8D-219 4th stage turbine blade fracture incidents that had occurred, Delta had discontinued repairing those turbine blades in their shop and were using either new blades or blades that were repaired at a turbine blade repair facility. Although a special dimensional inspection to measure the turbine blade's shroud notches was developed, there were no Delta-repaired 4th stage turbine blades available to measure.
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
- Uncontained engine failure during initial climb defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine (turbine/turboprop) › Turbine section › Incorrect service/maintenance
- Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine (turbine/turboprop) › Turbine section › Fatigue/wear/corrosion
The aircraft
- Seats: 142
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: P & W JT8D SERIES (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: P & W JT8D SERIES (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Delta Air Lines INC
The flight
- Departed from: Atlanta GA
- Destination: MIA Miami FL
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabi | 3 | |||
| Flight crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 142 |
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 N908DE 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.