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| Date: | Wednesday 24 June 1992 |
| Time: | 20:29 |
| Type: |  McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30F |
| Owner/operator: | FedEx |
| Registration: | N316FE |
| MSN: | 48314/444 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1988 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor, repaired |
| Location: | London-Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL) -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Cargo |
| Departure airport: | London-Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL) |
| Memphis International Airport, TN (MEM/KMEM) | |
| Investigating agency: | AAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The aircraft was carrying out a scheduled freight flight from London Heathrow to Memphis. The take-off weight was structerally limited to 580,000 lb and the aircraft took off at 518,000 lb. The wind was 040°/05 kt and runway 09R was in use for take-off. No anomalies had been discovered during the external inspection of the aircraft but, during the take-off run, the right nose wheel dropped off the axle and bounced along runways 09R and 05, before coming to rest in Block 64 of runway 05. Parts of the wheel/axle assembly were later found beside the threshold of runway 09R and further along adjacent to Block 89.
ATC informed the crew of the event and, after consultation with outside agencies, were able to identify which wheel had been lost. The commander elected to continue the flight to Memphis.
The eight and a half hour flight was uneventful and the aircraft made a normal landing. Using reverse thrust, it stopped on the runway without braking and, although the emergency services had been alerted, they were not required to lend assistance. The ground engineers then inspected the nose landing gear and replaced the missing wheel/tyre assembly before the aircraft was taxied to the ramp.
Inspection of the debris recovered from the runway revealed that it comprised parts from both the inner and outer nose-wheel bearings including badly distressed and broken rollers. The wheel itself, still fully inflated, retained the inner and outer bearing cups which bore evidence of smeared-in cage material, heat generation and evidence of the cone not running correctly within the cup
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422ef3aed915d137400027b/McDonnell-Douglas_DC10-30__N316FE_09-92.pdf
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/352908 (Photo)
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 15-Apr-2025 14:23 | Justanormalperson | Added |
| 15-Apr-2025 14:25 | ASN | Updated [Narrative, Accident report, ] |
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