Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-30 incident near Miami, Florida, September 1, 1983
On September 1, 1983 at about 3:00 pm local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-30, registered YV134, suffered minor damage in an incident near Miami, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under foreign airline rules (Part 129). No one was hurt; 201 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
- September 1, 1983 · about 3:00 pm local time
- Place
- Miami, Florida · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 201 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-10-30 · all DC-10-30s on the register
- Registration
- YV134 · no longer on the register · serial 46556
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · foreign airline rules (Part 129)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT EXPERIENCED THE SEPARATION OF A FLAP VANE WHILE ON FINAL APPROACH TO LAND. 50 INCHES OF THE RIGHT FLAP VANE SEPARATED AND CAUSED SLIGHT DAMAGE TO A PARKED AUTO ON THE STREET BELOW. THE ACFT CONTINUED ON TO AN UNEVENTLY LANDING. THE INCIDENT WAS NOT NOTICED UNTIL A LOCAL RESIDENT CALLED TO REPORT THE FALLEN ARTICLE. ALL DC-10 OPERATORS WERE NOTIFIED BY TELEX OF THE FAILURE DUE TO DELAMINATION OF THE VANE FROM MOISTURE INGESTION. A SKIN REPAIR HAD BEEN MADE INTHIS CASE AND A COLD BOND METHOD WITH INADEQUATE SURFACE PREPARATION AND INSUFFICIENT PRESSURE DURING BONDING WERE MAJORFACTORS IN THE FAILURE OF THE BOND. THE IDENTITY OF THE FACILITY THAT MADE THE BOND REPAIR TO THE VANE WAS NOT DETERMINED.
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: 12,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 555,000 lb
- Seats: 268
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge CF6-50C (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MVZN Caracas at 12:00 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:50 pm from MIA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 13 | |||
| Passengers | 188 |
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.