You can contribute by submitting additional or updated information.
| Date: | Thursday 27 March 1997 |
| Time: | 09:45 LT |
| Type: |  Boeing 767-232 |
| Owner/operator: | Delta Air Lines |
| Registration: | N105DA |
| MSN: | 22217/27 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1982 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 45577 hours |
| Engine model: | GE CF6-A2 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 198 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Category: | Serious incident |
| Location: | Dfw Airport, TX -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | Orlando, FL (KMCO) |
| (KDFW) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
During the landing approach, with the flaps extended to 15 degrees and the spoilers deployed, an 18-foot section of the right outboard flap separated from the trailing edge of the right wing. After making a flyby of the tower to allow controllers to view the extent of the damage, the flightcrew landed the airplane without further incident. The flap separation resulted from fatigue cracking of the four aft bolts fastening the flap to the inboard flap carriage support beam. The relief shoulders on three of the bolts exhibited thread contact marks which indicated that the attachment nuts were inserted all the way down to the relief shoulders. Either the bolt grip lengths were longer than necessary for this installation, or not enough shims were installed under the heads of the bolts or attachment nuts. Under these circumstances, the bolts most likely did not receive sufficient preload in tension, since the nuts probably bottomed onto the relief shoulders before the preload could be produced. Maintenance records indicated that the flap had not been removed from the wing since manufacture of the airplane in 1982 and had accumulated 45,577 flight hours and 22,155 flight cycles.
Probable Cause: The manufacturer's improper installation of the flap, which resulted in fatigue cracking of the flap attach bolts and separation of the flap.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB FTW97IA144
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 20 January 2020 | SE-RLC | West Air Sweden | 0 | Roma-Ciampino Airport (CIA/LIRA) |  |
sub |
| Collision with Ground support equipment | ||||||
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 12-Mar-2024 19:10 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2025 Flight Safety Foundation