| Date: | Monday 12 October 1992 |
| Time: | 21:01 LT |
| Type: | McDonnell Douglas MD-82 |
| Owner/operator: | Continental Airlines, Inc. |
| Registration: | N72822 |
| MSN: | 49482/1309 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1986 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 19807 hours |
| Engine model: | P&W JT8D-217A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 88 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Category: | Serious incident |
| Location: | Denver, CO -
United States of America
|
| Phase: | Unknown |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | Houston Intercontinental Airport, TX (IAH/KIAH) |
| Destination airport: | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Narrative:WHILE IN CRUISE FLIGHT, THE 'RIGHT REVERSER ACCUMULATOR LOW' CAUTION LIGHT ILLUMINATED. EXAMINATION FOLLOWING LANDING REVEALED THAT THE AUXILIARY POWER UNIT (APU) TURBINE WHEEL HAD SEPARATED IN AN UNCONTAINED FAILURE, AND HAD DAMAGED NUMEROUS COMPONENTS IN THE COMPARTMENT BELOW THE NUMBER TWO ENGINE PYLON. THE APU HAD BEEN PLACARDED AS INOPERATIVE TWO DAYS PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT. THE INVESTIGATION DID NOT REVEAL WHEN AN INADVERTENT ATTEMPT TO START THE APU HAD OCCURRED, BUT DID REVEAL THAT NO PROCEDURES, OTHER THAN THE INOPERATIVE PLACARD, WERE IN PLACE TO PREVENT START ATTEMPTS.
Probable Cause: AN INADVERTENT ATTEMPT, BY UNKNOWN PERSONS, TO START THE APU WHICH HAD BEEN PLACARDED AS INOPERATIVE. FACTORS WERE: INADEQUATE PROCEDURES IN RENDERING THE APU INCAPABLE OF BEING STARTED WHEN INOPERATIVE.
Accident investigation:
|
|
| | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Report number: | DEN93IA005 |
| Status: | Investigation completed |
| Duration: | 8 months |
| Download report: | Final report
|
|
Sources:
NTSB DEN93IA005
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 27 April 1993 |
N72822 |
Continental Air Lines |
0 |
Denver-Stapleton International Airport, CO (DEN) |
 |
sub |
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
| 18-Mar-2024 10:14 |
ASN Update Bot |
Added |
| 17-Oct-2024 17:24 |
ASN |
Updated [Cn, Other fatalities, Narrative, ] |
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