Boeing 737-200RS incident near Salt Lake City, Utah, September 24, 1997
On September 24, 1997 at about 5:27 pm local time, a Boeing 737-200RS, registered N205AU, suffered minor damage in an incident near Salt Lake City, Utah (Salt Lake City Int'L airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). 1 person had minor injuries; 68 others were unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The captain's failure to maintain directional control during landing roll. Factors were the loss of hydraulic pressure in the 'A' hydraulic system, the thrust reverser failure on the number one engine, and flight crew coordination not being maintained.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 24, 1997 · about 5:27 pm local time
- Place
- Salt Lake City, Utah · Salt Lake City Int'L · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 68 others were unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-200RS · all 737-200RSs on the register
- Registration
- N205AU · no longer on the register · serial 19421
- 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 flight crew said that when they raised the landing gear handle after takeoff, the master caution light illuminated as the result of the loss of 'A' system hydraulics. The captain declared an 'emergency' and preparations were made to land on runway 16L (12,004 feet by 150 feet). The first officer conducted the landing using 15 degrees of flaps and a landing speed of 140 knots. When he deployed the thrust reversers, the left thrust reverser malfunctioned resulting in asymmetrical braking thrust. The airplane's operations manual indicated that with the loss of 'A' hydraulic system and an airplane weight of 89,600 pounds, a landing speed of 156 knots should be used. Directional control during the landing roll would have been accomplished using rudder and differential braking because nose wheel steering would have been inoperable. The captain reported to the FAA Inspector and Frontier Airlines officials that during the landing roll, he took control of the airplane. Photographs taken at the incident scene indicated that after 8,000 feet of runway was used, the airplane's tire skid marks became significantly darker, with right two skid marks darker than the left two.
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: 18,836 hours in all; 6,000 in this make and model; 11,899 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,252 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, September 23, 1997; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 109,000 lb
- Seats: 116
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-9A (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Frontier Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: SLC at 5:08 pm
- Destination: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 16L, 12,004 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:36 pm from SLC
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 6 | ||
| Passengers | 62 |
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.