Aerospatiale ATR-72 incident near Dfw Airport, Texas, March 4, 1994
On March 4, 1994 at about 8:50 pm local time, a Aerospatiale ATR-72, registered N253AT, suffered minor damage in an incident near Dfw Airport, Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 56 people were on board or involved. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE BLOCKED NUMER 1 ENGINE DRAIN MANIFOLD.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 4, 1994 · about 8:50 pm local time
- Place
- Dfw Airport, Texas · Dallas/Fort Worth
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 56 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale ATR-72 · all ATR-72s on the register
- Registration
- N253AT · registry record · serial 253
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE TAXIING, THE NUMBER ONE ENGINE FIRE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE PILOT AND CO-PILOT INITIATED AN ENGINE SHUTDOWN AND COMPLETED APPROPRIATE EMERGENCY PROCEDURES. AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRCRAFT REVEALED THAT THE NO. 1 ENGINE MANIFOLD WAS BLOCKED WITH COKING DEPOSITS RESULTING IN FUEL SPILL AND SUBSEQUENT FIRE WITHIN THE NACELLE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 480 in this make and model; 185 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 47,400 lb
- Seats: 68
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PW127 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Simmons Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: SHV Shreveport LA
- Destination: DFW TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 4 | |||
| Passengers | 52 |
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.