Convair CV-580 accident near Dallas, Texas, March 25, 1987
On March 25, 1987 at about 2:45 am local time, a Convair CV-580, registered N73107, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dallas, Texas (Dallas/Ft. Worth airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 11 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 accident. 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
- March 25, 1987 · about 2:45 am local time
- Place
- Dallas, Texas · Dallas/Ft. Worth · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 11 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Convair CV-580
- Registration
- N73107 · no longer on the register · serial 8
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
METRO FLIGHT AIRLINES CONVAIR CV-580 ATTEMPTED TAKEOFF FROM RUNWAY 35L AT THE DALLAS/FORT WORTH AIRPORT (DFW) WITH CROSSWINDS EXCEEDING DEMONSTRATED CAPABILITY OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE TAKEOFF ATTEMPT VIOLATED COMPANY LIMITATIONS FOR CROSSWINDS IN THE CONVAIR CV-580. DURING THE TAKEOFF ROLL THE LEFT WING BECAME AIRBORNE AND RETURNED TO THE RUNWAY WITH SUFFICIENT FORCE TO ALLOW THE LEFT PROPELLER ASSEMBLY TO CONTACT THE RUNWAY CAUSING SEPARATION OF TWO PROPELLER BLADES AND LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED THE RUNWAY ONTO SOFT TERRAIN CAUSING THE NOSE GEAR TO COLLAPSE. THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT DROPPED AND THE AIRCRAFT CAME TO REST ON A CONNECTING TAXIWAY.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,819 hours in all; 1,127 in this make and model; 158 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 64,429 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 16, 1987; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 47,000 lb
- Seats: 50
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Allison 501D13 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DFW Dallas TX
- Destination: GGG Longview TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 35L, 11,388 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 270° at 15 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:50 am from DFW
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 8 |
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.