USA Jet crash photos

Sadly, this accident claimed the lives of one of the two crewmembers on board this DC-9-15 when it crashed this morning during approach to the Saltillo Airport just west of Monterrey, Mexico. The aircraft was registered as N199US and belonged to the American charter freight and passenger hauler USA Jet Airlines. The captain was killed in the crash, while the first officer suffered severe burns. Both were US citizens. Weather was reportedly clear at the time when the aircraft slammed onto a road near the airport. The NTSB has dispatched a team of investigators to assist the Mexican government in its investigation. This incident saddens me as I've worked several USA Jet baby DC-9 operations over the years. R.I.P. and the prayers of the PointNiner crew go out to the families on this one.





(story via CNN.com)
(pictures via Vanguardia)

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NTSB wants 757 wings checked

The National Transportation Safety Board released a recommendation to the FAA today that would require operators of Boeing 757 aircraft to make "a one- time visual inspection of the upper wing fixed trailing edge panel support beam clips for cracks, proper orientation, and spacers." This is of course following two high profile incidents recently in which 757s have shed wing panels in flight. The first occurred in March with a US Airways 757, and the second took place earlier this month when a Northwest Airlines 757 did the same. We brought you both of those stories here at PointNiner as they unfolded and I was starting to wonder when the NTSB would get on this one. I'm glad to see that today they finally have released something on it.

The NTSB also takes a hit on Boeing by asking the FAA to require "Boeing to issue more explicit instructions and figures that clearly illustrate the correct orientation of the clips and spacers that attach the Boeing 757 panel". Maybe they should just request airlines to stock more 100 mph tape.

The photo above was actually taken by a passenger on the US Airways 757 after it lost a section of its wing panel.

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My APU is on FIRE, Redux

Apparently the NTSB has forgotten about this incident in January of 2007 in their recommendation letter earlier this week. The photo is pretty self explanitory. In a similiar fashion to the Air Norstrum and ASA incidents, this Mesa Airlines CRJ-200 shed one of it fan blades over Cripple Creek, CO (coincidence?) in a flight from Denver to Phoenix. They were able to return and land without problem at Denver, but their wasn't much left of #1 engine fan assembly. All incidents involved the GE CF34-3B1 engine.

(Just in case you were wondering, yes we realize an APU was not involved in any of these incidents. It is simply a reference to an actual APU fire we were involved with years ago that included a French Canadian flight crew)