Boeing 747-200 incident near New York, New York, September 11, 1993
On September 11, 1993 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Boeing 747-200, registered N17025, suffered minor damage in an incident near New York, New York. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 387 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The improper installation of the fairing by company maintenance personnel, resulting in the infligh separation of the fairing in flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 11, 1993 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- New York, New York
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 387 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 747-200 · all 747-200s on the register
- Registration
- N17025 · no longer on the register · serial 20535
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHEN THE WING FLAPS WERE RETRACTED AFTER TAKEOFF, THE CAPTAIN NOTED AIRFRAME VIBRATION. HE DUMPED FUEL AND RETURNED TO LAND. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED THAT THE NO 1 MOVABLE FLAP FAIRING WAS MISSING. THE FAIRING WAS LOCATED THE NEXT DAY IN A FIELD APPROXIMATELY 3 MILES FROM THE TAKEOFF RUNWAY. EXAMINATION OF THE FAIRING REVEALED THAT THE TWO, LOWER HINGE BOLTS WERE MISSING. THE HINGES AND BUSHINGS SHOWED NO EVIDENCE OF DEFORMATION OR 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; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 1
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,898 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 5, 1993; 2,848 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 785,000 lb
- Seats: 387
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT9D-7R4G2 (turbofan); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: EWR Newark NJ at 10:45 pm
- Destination: LGW London
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 17 | |||
| Passengers | 370 |
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.