DC9 nearly looses engines on heavy landing (photo!)

Read the forum code of contact

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 4,887

You thought you experienced some bad landings? Think again!

A Aeropostal Alas de Venezuela DC-9-51 passenger plane sustained substantial damage in a hard landing accident at Puerto Ordaz Airport (PZO), Venezuela. No serious injuries were reported among the five crew members and 125 passengers.
The airplane operated on a domestic service, flight VH 342, from Caracas-Simón Bolívar International Airport (CCS). Upon landing at Puerto Ordaz the airplane touched down very hard, causing both engine mounts to break from the fuselage.

http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20110926-0

http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/1784/fiije.jpg

Original post

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 2,886

Ouch! Reminds me of a video of a prototype DC9-50 or maybe an MD80 breaking it's back during a heavy landing.

Member for

18 years 2 months

Posts: 2,814

Metal fatigue on a 35 year old aircraft?

Member for

17 years 5 months

Posts: 796

Thats interesting because thats not where a nine usually breaks. Delta broke one in Tennessee in the 70's, and Eastern broke one in Pensacola in the 1980's, and they usually break just behind the wing and just in front of the engines. I don't have the links handy but there are some grainy old pics associated with both of those incidents. I think Delta actually broke another one in half somewhere else also.

The nine normally lands a little firm because of the flight control system ("flying the tabs.") An extra "anti-float" tab was added on the MD-80 series to help with that problem.

If I had to guess I would say an engine fitting/pylon/support frame was fatigued or damaged during an engine change.

Member for

12 years 11 months

Posts: 390

I see the reverser clam is open. Surprised that didn't pull the engine off altogether.

Member for

18 years 9 months

Posts: 107

This particular DC-9 was originally delivered to Finnair in 1976.

Bye

Member for

18 years 11 months

Posts: 8,847

Very neat camouflage of the airline name! ;)

"A little bit late on the roundout, Hoskins..."