Boeing 737-200 accident near Jacksonville, Florida, March 21, 1996
On March 21, 1996, a Boeing 737-200, registered EICLK, was substantially damaged in an accident near Jacksonville, Florida (Jacksonville Intl airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 62 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
failure of the nose gear taxi light support bracket due to in service damage, which resulted in debris being ingested by the engines. Contributing to the accident was the failure of company maintenance personnel to comply with a Grimes Service Bulletin and a Boeing Service Letter which recommended changing the nose gear taxi light support bracket to an improved design.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 21, 1996
- Place
- Jacksonville, Florida · Jacksonville Intl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 62 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-200 · all 737-200s on the register
- Registration
- EICLK · no longer on the register · serial 21733
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During takeoff the nose gear taxi light separated from the nose landing gear when the aluminum support bracket failed. The debris from the nose gear taxi light was ingested by both engines causing damage to the fan sections. The nose gear taxi light assembly is manufactured by Grimes Aerospace Company. In June 1992 Grimes began offering a stainless steel support bracket to replace the aluminum support bracket. In service history showed that the aluminum support bracket was cracking due to damage from the nose gear tow bar during towing operations. The stainless steel bracket is resistant to this damage. The change to the new stainless steel bracket was the subject of Grimes Service Bulletins in 1992 and 1993, and a Boeing Service Letter in 1994.
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: 10,000 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 63 in the last 30 days; 7,500 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 35,690 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 20, 1996; 6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 117,500 lb
- Seats: 128
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-15 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Air South Airlines, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: JAX
- Destination: ATL Atlanta GA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 25, 8,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 310° at 16 knots, gusting 27
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,500 ft
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 57 |
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.