Nihon YS-11 incident near Tulsa, Oklahoma, February 15, 1984
On February 15, 1984 at about 4:10 pm local time, a Nihon YS-11, registered N903TC, was involved in an incident near Tulsa, Oklahoma (Tulsa Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 20 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 15, 1984 · about 4:10 pm local time
- Place
- Tulsa, Oklahoma · Tulsa Int'L
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 20 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Nihon YS-11
- Registration
- N903TC · no longer on the register · serial 2044
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT EXPERIENCED A NOSE WHEEL STEERING MALFUNCTION & RAN OFF THE RWY DURING LANDING. THE NOSE WHEEL SYSTEM WAS REMOVED FROM THE ACFT & SUBMITTED FOR INSPECTION & OVERHAUL. EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT THE LEVER SHAFT 'EARS' HAD SEPARATED FROM FATIGUE.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 800 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 21,772 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme; 51 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 51,800 lb
- Seats: 55
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce DART 542-10J (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LIT Little Rock AR
- Destination: TUL Tulsa OK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 17L, 10,000 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 23 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,700 ft; not recorded at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:50 pm from TUL
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 4 | |||
| Passengers | 16 |
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.
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.