Airbus Industrie A-320-231 incident near Columbus, Ohio, February 16, 1999
On February 16, 1999 at about 9:02 pm local time, a Airbus Industrie A-320-231, registered N628AW, suffered minor damage in an incident near Columbus, Ohio (Port Columbus Intl Arpt airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 31 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
a failure of the external o-rings in the nose landing gear steering module.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 16, 1999 · about 9:02 pm local time
- Place
- Columbus, Ohio · Port Columbus Intl Arpt · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 31 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Airbus Industrie A-320-231 · all A-320-231s on the register
- Registration
- N628AW · registry record · serial 67
- 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 landing gear was lowered, the flight crew received landing gear control and interface unit (LGCIU) faults. A visual fly-by revealed the nose wheels were rotated 90 degrees from the desired direction for landing. A normal touchdown was made, after which, the captain commanded an emergency evacuation using the overwing exits. Examination of the airplane revealed the external 'O' rings in the steering control valve had extruded and by-passed pressurized hydraulic fluid to rotate the nose wheels. This event had occurred before, and the manufacturer had issued a service bulletin. The operator had not complied with the service bulletin, nor were they required to comply with it.
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: 10,850 hours in all; 141 in the last 90 days; 47 in the last 30 days; 6,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 28,404 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 14, 1999; 18 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 162,068 lb
- Seats: 154
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Int'L Aero En V2500-A1 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: America West Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: EWR Newark NJ at 7:04 pm
- Destination: CMH
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 28L, 10,250 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 16 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from CMH
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 26 |
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 N628AW 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.