Raytheon Aircraft Company 400A incident near Rochester, New York, March 13, 2014
On March 13, 2014 at about 3:20 pm local time, a 1998 Raytheon Aircraft Company 400A, registered N193BJ, suffered minor damage in an incident during initial climb near Rochester, New York (Greater Rochester Intl airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The probable cause of the uncontained No. 2 engine failure on the Raytheon Beechjet 400A was a herring gull birdstrike that resulted in fan blade contact with the inlet case and rub induced excitation of a previously unidentified natural frequency (resonance) within the engine operating range.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 12, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 13, 2014 · about 3:20 pm local time · cases in 2014
- Place
- Rochester, New York · Greater Rochester Intl · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 7 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Raytheon Aircraft Company 400A A, built 1998
- Registration
- N193BJ · not in the FAA's current or past register files · serial RK-193
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The No. 2 engine sustained a herring gull bird strike during takeoff climb from Rochester International Airport- Rochester, NY. The impact from the birdstrike resulted in contact between the fan and inlet case that separated eleven (11) of the nineteen (19) fan blades and subsequently led to the failure of the No. 1 bearing housing, and a midshaft fracture of the low pressure turbine shaft. Materials analysis on recovered fan blade fragments determined that all separated blades failed due to overload and no evidence of fatigue was identified. A series of modal tests including: tap hammer, high energy shaker, and computer model simulation were conducted at the system and component level. The tests identified a four nodal diameter coincidence at about 72% N1 speed. When sufficient energy is imparted to the engine fan during a foreign object ingestion event like a birdstrike, it may result in a rub induced excitation and subsequent fan blade separation and catastrophic engine failure.
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
- Birdstrike during initial climb
- Powerplant sys/comp malf/fail during initial climb defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine (turbine/turboprop) › Compressor section › Failure other cases naming the engine
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: P&W Canada JT15D-5 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: P&W Canada JT15D-5 (turbofan); 5,845 hours total
- Operator: Guardian Pharmacy LLC
The flight
- Departed from: ROC Rochester NY
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 310° at 17 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 12°F (-11°C), dew point 1°F (-17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.32 inHg
- Observation at 2:20 pm from ROC
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 5 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 documents, released by the NTSB on March 16, 2017. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Powerplant Group Chairman's Factual Report | PDF, 19 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Pratt & Whitney Canada Materials Investigation Laboratory Report- ME16136FS | PDF, 8 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Pilot's Statement to FAA | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 4 | NTSB - Adopted Board Report | PDF, 5 pages | View Download |
| 5 | Transmittal Letter | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- Raytheon Aircraft Company 2,138 aircraft on the register
- Engine: P&W Canada JT15D-5 42 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Engine: P&W Canada JT15D-5 42 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Frederick Douglass/Greater Rochester International · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in New York 1,965 since 1982 · 252 in the last ten years
- New York 6,663 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ENG14IA011.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.