Mcdonnell Douglas DC-8-61 incident near Miami, Florida, July 5, 1997
On July 5, 1997 at about 1:55 am local time, a Mcdonnell Douglas DC-8-61, registered N27UA, suffered minor damage in an incident near Miami, Florida (Miami International airport). 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
failure of the right main landing gear cylinder due to stress corrosion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 5, 1997 · about 1:55 am local time
- Place
- Miami, Florida · Miami International
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mcdonnell Douglas DC-8-61
- Registration
- N27UA · no longer on the register · serial 45942
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Postflight examination of the landing gear revealed the right main landing gear cylinder assembly had failed. Examination of the cylinder revealed the cylinder failed due to stress corrosion cracking.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,100 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 46,711 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, June 21, 1997; 76 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 320,300 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT3D-3B (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Fine Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: SDQ Santo Domingo OF at 9:45 pm
- Destination: MIA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 180° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 6,500 ft; scat
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:56 am from MIA
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 N27UA 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.