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| Date: | Friday 6 April 1979 |
| Time: | c. 18:20 LT |
| Type: |  Boeing 707-321 |
| Owner/operator: | Southeast Airlines, opb Aerocóndor Colombia |
| Registration: | N433MA |
| MSN: | 18084/212 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1961 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 198 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Category: | Serious incident |
| Location: | Miami International Airport, FL (MIA/KMIA) -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Taxi |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Miami International Airport, FL (MIA/KMIA) |
| Kingston-Norman Manley International Airport (KIN/MKJP) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Aerocóndor Colombia flight SE65, a Boeing 707-321, N433MA, was taxiing to the runway for takeoff when a large chunk of the left main gear failed. Substandard maintenance practices were cited as the most likely cause.
Aerocóndor Colombia flight SE65 was flying to Soledad International from Miami with a stop in Kingston for fuel. For the Miami-Kingston leg, 190 passengers and 8 crew would be onboard.
The aircraft was a 18 year old Boeing 707-321, originally built for Pan Am. The aircraft was not owned by Aerocóndor, but Southeast Airlines from which Aerocóndor had been allowed to use for this flight. The aircraft had only recently been integrated into Southeast’s fleet, having arrived on February 1st. Maintenance was originally believed to have been Adequate.
The aircraft left its gate and continued on to taxi to the runway. Though while still taxiing toward the runway a heavy jolt was felt in the aircraft. The crew decided to stop the aircraft and shut down the engines on the taxiway. The passengers were de boarded and were brought back to the terminal. Upon visual inspection of the aircraft it was revealed that the Left Main-Gear Truck beam had failed.
More detailed investigation by the NTSB had revealed a fatigue crack in the Left Main-Gear Truck beam. The crack had clearly been overlooked in previous inspections and had not been noticed by any member of Southeast’s and possibly the aircraft’s previous operator Bahamas World Airways.
Probable Cause:
The NTSB determined that the most likely cause of the serious incident involving Aerocóndor Colombia flight 65 was due to inadequate maintenance practices and oversight by Southeast and Bahamas World Airways.
Accident investigation:
|
Sources:
https://www.ntsb.gov/Pages/brief.aspx?ev_id=36980&key=0
FAA ASIAS 1975
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/9222903 (Photo)
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 29-Aug-2025 19:42 | Justanormalperson | Added |
| 29-Aug-2025 19:45 | Justanormalperson | Updated [Accident report, ] |
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