Dassault-Breguet FALCON 50 accident near Parkersburg, West Virginia, October 28, 1990
On October 28, 1990 at about 6:45 pm local time, a Dassault-Breguet FALCON 50, registered N52DC, was substantially damaged in an accident near Parkersburg, West Virginia. It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
CATASTROPHIC FAILURE OF THE LEFT ENGINE FAN DISC DUE TO LOW CYCLE FATIGUE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 28, 1990 · about 6:45 pm local time
- Place
- Parkersburg, West Virginia
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Dassault-Breguet FALCON 50 · all FALCON 50s on the register
- Registration
- N52DC · registry record · serial 126
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
N52DC WAS CLIMBING THRU FL280 WHEN THE FLT CREW FELT A 'VIOLENT SHUDDER' IN THE AIRFRAME AND OBSERVED INDICATIONS OF A LEFT ENGINE FAILURE. VISUAL EXAMINATION OF THE LEFT ENG REVEALED THE FAN SECTION HAD SEPARATED (UNCONTAINED FAILURE/TEARAWAY). THE AIRPLANE WAS LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. A POST-ACCIDENT EXAM OF THE PARTS REVEALED THE FAN DISC FAILED CATASTROPHICALLY DUE TO LOW CYCLE FATIGUE.
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
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 38,800 lb
- Seats: 10
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TFE 731-3-1C (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Dow Chemical Company
The flight
- Departed from: LWB Lewisburg WV
- Destination: MBS Saginaw MI
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
Other NTSB records under N52DC the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number NYC91LA020.