Aerospatiale ATR-72-212 incident near Dfw Airport, Texas, December 12, 1994
On December 12, 1994 at about 3:00 pm local time, a Aerospatiale ATR-72-212, registered N633AS, 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; 38 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FIRE DUE TO THE INTERNAL FAILURE OF THE NUMBER ONE DC STARTER-GENERATOR.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 12, 1994 · about 3:00 pm local time
- Place
- Dfw Airport, Texas · Dallas/Fort Worth Airport
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 38 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerospatiale ATR-72-212 ATR 72-212 · all ATR-72-212s on the register
- Registration
- N633AS · registry record · serial 344
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE NUMBER ONE ENGINE FIRE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED WHILE TAXIING BACK TO THE GATE AFTER THE #1 GENERATOR FAULT LIGHT HAD ILLUMINATED WHILE HOLDING SHORT FOR DEPARTURE. SMOKE WAS OBSERVED COMING FROM THE ENGINE AND THE CREW DISCHARGED BOTH ONBOARD FIRE BOTTLES AND SECURED THE ENGINE. AN EMERGENCY EVACUATION WAS ORDERED BY THE CREW ON THE ACTIVE TAXIWAY VIA THE RIGHT AFT SERVICE DOOR. THERE WERE NO REPORTED INJURIES DURING THE EVACUATION. THE ENGINE COWLING AND SEVERAL ACCESSORIES SUSTAINED FIRE DAMAGE. THE FIRE WAS THE RESULT OF THE INTERNAL FAILURE OF THE GENERATOR DUE TO FAILURE OF A GENERATOR BEARING.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,800 hours in all; 1,338 in this make and model; 231 in the last 90 days; 81 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,133 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme
- Maximum gross weight: 48,501 lb
- Seats: 70
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PW127 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Atlantic Southeast Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: DFW TX at 6:00 am
- Destination: OKC Oklahoma City OK
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 18L, 11,388 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:50 pm from DFW, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 4 | |||
| Passengers | 34 |
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.