Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10 incident near Los Angeles, California, June 6, 1987
On June 6, 1987 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10, registered N105AA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Los Angeles, California (Los Angeles International airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 234 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 incident. 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
- June 6, 1987 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Los Angeles, California · Los Angeles International
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 234 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-10 · all DC-10-10s on the register
- Registration
- N105AA · registry record · serial 46505
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
OVER THE OUTER MARKER, THE CAPTAIN EXTENDED THE FLAPS TO 50 DEGREES. AS THE FLAPS EXTENDED PAST 35 DEGREES, THE AIRPLANE ROLLED TO THE LEFT. THE FLAPS WERE RETRACTED TO THE 35 DEGREE POSITION AND A GO-AROUND WAS EXECUTED. THE FLAPS WERE SET AT 22 DEGREES AND THE AIRPLANE LANDED SAFELY. AN EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED THAT 20 FEET OF THE LEFT OUTBOARD TRAILING EDGE FLAP VANE WAS MISSING. AN EXAMINATION OF THE FLAP VANE SECTIONS REVEALED THAT THE ATTACHMENT NUT AT TRACK NUMBER TWO WAS SEVERELY CORRODED. THE BOLT WAS NOT RECOVERED.
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: 33,000 hours in all; 3,000 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 42,876 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, May 17, 1987; 174 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 615,000 lb
- Seats: 295
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF6-6 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: American Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: ORD Chicago IL
- Destination: LAX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 25L, 11,096 ft by 200 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,100 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Observation at 6:00 pm from LAX
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 15 | |||
| Passengers | 219 |
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.