ASN Aircraft accident Embraer EMB-120RT Brasilia N265CA Monroe, MI
ASN logo
 

Status:Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date:Thursday 9 January 1997
Time:15:54
Type:Silhouette image of generic E120 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
Embraer EMB-120RT Brasilia
Operator:Comair/Delta Connection
Registration: N265CA
MSN: 120257
First flight: 1991
Total airframe hrs:12752
Cycles:12734
Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PW118
Crew:Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3
Passengers:Fatalities: 26 / Occupants: 26
Total:Fatalities: 29 / Occupants: 29
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Aircraft fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location:near Monroe, MI (   United States of America)
Phase: Approach (APR)
Nature:Domestic Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport, KY (CVG/KCVG), United States of America
Destination airport:Detroit-Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, MI (DTW/KDTW), United States of America
Flightnumber:3272
Narrative:
The Embraer aircraft had departed Cincinnati at 14:53 for a flight to Detroit. Thirty-eight seconds before impact the aircraft was flying at 4000 feet with a speed of 164 knots, flaps and gear retracted and engines at flight idle. After making a turn to a 090deg. heading, the Brasilia then started a slight roll to the left. When the angle was about 20deg. left wing down, the crew tried to counteract the roll (t-33 sec). The bank angle increased through 30deg. at t-29 sec, followed by an increase in engine power when the crew tried to stop the pitch from decreasing at t-26 sec. At t-17 sec airspeed had dropped to 145 knots when a rapid roll from 40deg. to 146deg. left bank was experienced. At t-10 sec the pitch decreased from 3deg. nose-up to 50deg. nose-down. The aircraft descended out of control, experiencing some steep roll and pitch oscillations and crashed nose down into a snowy field 18 miles short of the Detroit-Metropolitan Airport runway 03. There were indications that the pilots had tried to activate the engine-fire extinguishing system, though no traces of fire on the no. 2 engine have been found by the NTSB.

Probable Cause:

PROBABLE CAUSE: The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the FAA's failure to establish adequate aircraft certification standards for flight in icing conditions, the FAA's failure to ensure that an FAA/CTA-approved procedure for the accident airplane's deice system operation was implemented by U.S.-based air carriers, and the FAA's failure to require the establishment of adequate minimum airspeeds for icing conditions, which led to the loss of control when the airplane accumulated a thin, rough accretion of ice on its lifting surfaces.
Contributing to the accident were the flight crew's decision to operate in icing conditions near the lower margin of the operating airspeed envelope (with flaps retracted), and Comair's failure to establish and adequately disseminate unambiguous minimum airspeed values for flap configurations and for flight in icing conditions."

Accident investigation:

cover
Investigating agency: NTSB
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 1 year and 10 months
Accident number: NTSB/AAR-98-04
Download report: Final report

Classification:
Icing
Loss of control

Sources:
» NTSB Id. DCA97MA017


Follow-up / safety actions

NTSB issued 25 Safety Recommendations

Show all...

Photos

photo of Embraer-120RT-Brasilia-N265CA
N265CA
photo of Embraer-120RT-Brasilia-N265CA
N265CA
photo of Embraer-120RT-Brasilia-N265CA
N265CA
photo of Embraer-120RT-Brasilia-N265CA
accident date: 09-01-1997
type: Embraer 120RT Brasilia
registration: N265CA
 

Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport, KY to Detroit-Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, MI as the crow flies is 367 km (229 miles).
Accident location: Exact; as reported in the official accident report.

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
languages: languages

Share

Embraer EMB-120

  • 357 built
  • 8th loss
  • 7th fatal accident
  • The worst accident (at the time)
  • 2nd worst accident (currently)
» safety profile

The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:

CONNECT WITH US: FSF on social media FSF Facebook FSF Twitter FSF Youtube FSF LinkedIn FSF Instagram

©2024 Flight Safety Foundation

1920 Ballenger Av, 4th Fl.
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
www.FlightSafety.org