Boeing 747-273C incident near Los Angeles, California, May 19, 1996
On May 19, 1996 at about 11:40 am local time, a Boeing 747-273C, registered N470EV, suffered minor damage in an incident near Los Angeles, California. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the operator's failure to adopt a manufacturer's stipulated ultrasonic inspection procedure, which led to the in-flight separation of the wing panel.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 19, 1996 · about 11:40 am local time
- Place
- Los Angeles, California
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747-273C · all 747-273Cs on the register
- Registration
- N470EV · no longer on the register · serial 20653
- 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 crew felt a rumble as the aircraft was accelerating in the climb-to-cruise segment, and subsequently found that the right wing inboard wing panel had been partially torn away. The captain elected to return to the airport where a landing was made with the inboard flaps, which showed secondary damage, retracted. An inspection showed trailing edge portions of the composite right inboard wing panel had separated and damaged the fore and mid right inboard flaps. Maintenance records revealed that cracking was detected in the forward outboard corner during the last C check. The crack was repaired, inspected, and repainted. The previous C check also found disbonding and delamination in the right wing panel. Boeing has received a total of 245 operator reports involving disbonding of this panel, which has separated from the aircraft in flight in 95 instances. The wing flaps are susceptible to secondary damage as a result of the panel separations. A service bulletin with five revisions has been issued. Operators have been directed to replace the coin tap sound inspection with an ultrasound inspection of the panels to improve the detection likelihood of a disbonding that has occurred below the panel surface. Prior to this incident, the operator chose to retain the coin tap sound inspection method rather than adopt the ultrasonic inspection.
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: 18,000 hours in all; 600 in this make and model; 34 in the last 90 days; 17,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,174 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, May 7, 1996; 93 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 800,000 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D-7J (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LAX at 11:29 am
- Destination: HNL Honolulu HI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 020° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 am from LAX
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 |
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.
Other NTSB records under N470EV the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.