US EditionNTSB: Alaska Airlines Landing Gear Collapse Caused by 'Excessive Grinding'
- On August 20, 2023, a Boeing 737-800 operated by Alaska Airlines experienced a collapse of its left landing gear while touching down at California’s John Wayne Airport, carrying 112 people on board.
- The National Transportation Safety Board determined that excessive grinding of a metal pin’s surface, which occurred in a maintenance procedure conducted on July 5, 2018, weakened the metal through heat exposure, allowing a fatigue crack to form over approximately 4,000 landings and ultimately causing the pin to fracture and the landing gear to collapse.
- The NTSB found that overheating from the grinding softened the pin’s metal, making it prone to cracking, though the crack was not present immediately after maintenance but grew deep enough to cause fracture by the incident date.
- The cracked 10-inch pin had a 0.144-inch deep fatigue crack large enough to fracture, which caused the left landing gear to fail, sending sparks as the engine scraped the runway, prompting evacuation without injuries, while the captain reported a 'firm jolt' and the plane pulling left.
- The incident highlights maintenance procedure risks and suggests airlines must monitor effects of grinding during overhauls to prevent future landing gear failures and ensure passenger safety.
18 Articles
18 Articles
New York Post
Cause of failed Alaska Airlines landing gear that sent passengers screaming revealed
Nearly two years after passengers screamed while sparks flew down a runway during the landing of an Alaska Airlines flight, the cause has been revealed.
The Mercury news
siliconvalley.comLanding gear collapse on Alaska Airlines 737 landing in California caused by ‘excessive grinding’ during maintenance, NTSB says
By Alexandra Skores, CNN Washington — “Excessive grinding” during maintenance led to a metal pin cracking and eventually breaking causing the left landing gear to collapse on an Alaska Airlines flight in 2023, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a final report Tuesday. On August 20, 2023, the Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-800 was landing at John Wayne-Orange County Airport in when the gear failed, sending sparks flying as the engine s…
NTSB: Alaska Airlines landing gear collapse caused by 'excessive grinding'
The National Transportation Safety Board revealed Tuesday that 'excessive grinding' during maintenance work is what caused an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737's left landing gear to collapse upon landing in Southern California
Landing gear collapse on Alaska Airlines 737 caused by ‘excessive grinding’ during maintenance, NTSB says
“Excessive grinding” during maintenance led to a metal pin to crack and eventually break causing the left landing gear to collapse on an Alaska Airlines flight in 2023, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a final report Tuesday.
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