Boeing 737-300 incident near Colorado Spgs, Colorado, April 17, 1997
On April 17, 1997 at about 2:50 am local time, a Boeing 737-300, registered N962WP, was involved in an incident near Colorado Spgs, Colorado (Colorado Springs airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 125 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
An oil leak around the APU aft bearing seal which resulted in a fire in the APU exhaust.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 17, 1997 · about 2:50 am local time
- Place
- Colorado Spgs, Colorado · Colorado Springs · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 125 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-300 · all 737-300s on the register
- Registration
- N962WP · no longer on the register · serial 23748
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While on short final to land, at approximately 200 feet above ground level, the APU fire warning light illuminated. The crew performed the appropriate procedures and the fire warning light extinguished. After landing, the crew had the fire department visually inspect the aircraft and follow the aircraft to the gate where the passengers were off loaded in normal fashion. Examination and testing of the APU revealed that a fire had occurred in the APU exhaust as a result of oil entering the hot exhaust gas stream due to leakage around the aft turbine bearing seal. The seal evidenced scoring around its circumference and the seal surface was treated, in accordance with the maintenance manual, by Metco spray. Due to previous history of oil leakage around the seals treated with Metco Spray, in 1988, Allied Signal changed the treatment to Tungsten carbide which eliminated the leakage problem. However, due to some operators having difficulty in obtaining the Tungsten carbide coating, the Metco spray coating procedure was left in the overhaul manual.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,018 hours in all; 4,322 in this make and model; 155 in the last 90 days; 91 in the last 30 days; 9,769 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 25,952 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, April 14, 1997; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 138,500 lb
- Seats: 145
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CFM56-3-B2 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: IAH Houston TX
- Destination: COS
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 17L, 13,500 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 160° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:50 am from COS, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 120 |
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.