Casa 212 incident near Arecibo, Puerto Rico, January 25, 1985
On January 25, 1985 at about 11:00 pm local time, a Casa 212, registered N436CA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Arecibo, Puerto Rico (Arecibo airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 16 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
- January 25, 1985 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Arecibo, Puerto Rico · Arecibo
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 16 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Casa 212
- Registration
- N436CA · registry record · serial 287
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ON A SCHEDULED INTERNATIONAL COMMUTER FLIGHT DURING CLIMB THE CREW NOTED A FIRE IN THE NUMBER ONE ENGINE. THE EXECUTED THE EMERGENCY CHECKLIST AND DISCHARGED TWO FIREBOTTLES. THE FLAMES CONTINUED TO EXIT THE TAILPIPE. THE CREW EXECUTED A FORCED LANDING TO AN INTERMIDIATE FIELD AND SHUT THE AIRCRAFT DOWN, AT WHICH TIME THE FIRE STOPPED. EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE REVEALED THAT THE AFT TURBINE BEARING WAS FAILED AND EXHIBITED EVIDENCE OF BEING BEARING WAS FAILED AND EXHIBITED EVIDENCE OF BEING MIS-ALIGNED AT INSTALLATION. ALSO NOTED WAS THE FACT THAT THE BEARING RETAINER EXIBITED NO EVIDENCE OF BEING NITRIDED AS REQUIRED WHICH ACCELERATED THE FAILURE.
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: 19,000 hours in all; 500 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,115 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 14, 1985; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 16,427 lb
- Seats: 18
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Garrett 331-10-511C (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SJU San Juan PR
- Destination: MDST Santiago OF
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 8, 3,975 ft by 60 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 090° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:53 pm from SJU, 40 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 14 |
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 N436CA 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.