Boeing 727-31 incident near Gulf Of Mexico, November 2, 1991
On November 2, 1991 at about 3:17 pm local time, a Boeing 727-31, registered N839TW, suffered minor damage in an incident near Gulf Of Mexico. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 118 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE OVERFILLING OF THE FORWARD LAVATORY DURING SERVICING AND THE FAILURE TO REPLACE THE FILL/RINSE LINE CAP AFTER SERVICING BY THE GROUND SERVICE PERSONNEL WHICH RESULTED IN THE LAVATORY VENTING FLUID THROUGH THE FILL/RINSE LINE DURING FLIGHT AND THE SUBSEQUENT ICE FORMATION AND INGESTION OF ICE INTO NUMBER THREE ENGINE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 2, 1991 · about 3:17 pm local time
- Place
- Gulf Of Mexico
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 118 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 727-31 · all 727-31s on the register
- Registration
- N839TW · no longer on the register · serial 18904
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
GROUND PERSONNEL SERVICED FORWARD LAVATORY JUST BEFORE FLIGHT. FLIGHT ATTENDANT STATED FLUID WAS VISIBLE IN UPPER TOILET AREA OF FORWARD LAVATORY AFTER SERVICING INDICATING IT HAD BEEN OVERFILLED. ENROUTE NUMBER 3 ENGINE FAILED AND WAS SHUTDOWN. FLIGHT DIVERTED TO MIAMI. ON ARRIVAL A BLUE STREAK WAS FOUND ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE AIRCRAFT BEGINNING AT THE FORWARD LAVATORY SERVICE DOOR AND ENDING AT THE INLET TO NUMBER 3 ENGINE. THE FORWARD LAVATORY SERVICE DOOR WAS FOUND CLOSED AND THE FILL/RINSE LINE CAP WAS MISSING WHEN THE DOOR WAS OPENED. THE FILL/RINSE LINE CHECK VALVE WAS FOUND STUCK OPEN. WHEN A CAP WAS INSTALLED ON THE LINE NO LEAKAGE OCCURRED. THE LAVATORY DRAIN LINE DID NOT LEAK. NUMBER 3 ENGINE HAD SUSTAINED FAN DAMAGE DUE TO INGESTION OF SOFT MATTER.
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: 8,700 hours in all; 4,200 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 45 in the last 30 days; 6,800 as pilot in command; 1,045 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, January 2, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 163,500 lb
- Seats: 121
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EWR Newark NJ at 12:45 pm
- Destination: MMUN Cancun OF
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: -65°F (-54°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 6 | |||
| Passengers | 112 |
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.