Michigan

The aircraft was dispatched at Kenneth Ingalls Sawyer AFB for a local training mission, carrying seven pilot under training and one instructor. Following several touch-and-go maneuvers, the crew attempted to takeoff when an explosion occurred in the rear of the aircraft, causing the tail section to detach. Out of control, the aircraft crash landed on the runway, slid for about 3,000 feet and came to rest, broken in several pieces. All eight crew members were rescued.

Following a steep approach at Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport in crosswind conditions, the four engine aircraft landed hard. Upon landing, it went out of control, veered off runway and came to rest, bursting into flames. Six crew members were killed while 10 others were injured. The aircraft was destroyed by a post crash fire.

The flight was an air taxi cargo flight carrying truck parts. After takeoff, the tower asked the pilot if he was in difficulty and the pilot replied 'roger' and requested a change of flight plan. The aircraft was seen flying erratically just above the tree tops. The aircraft descended almost vertically into a residential area. The rear of one home was ignited by the impact and 2 occupants of the house were fatally burned. Post accident investigation revealed no engine malfunction but there were discrepancies in the load manifest and the aircraft weight and balance. Before takeoff a company employee watched the pilot secure the cargo with ropes nets and clips but did not help because he 'didn't know what the pilot was doing. 'Impact' damage precluded determination of the original placement and security of the cargo and any possible shifting prior to impact. The net weight on the cargo manifest did not include the weight of the trays to hold the parts. This was an omission of 150 lbs. Company personnel said no weight and balance information was left with them when the aircraft departed.

Aircraft was scheduled for an instructional flight. During the weather briefing, the CFI told the FSS specialist that the flight would include engine out practice. Witness statements indicate that the aircraft rolled sharply to the right and nosed down after attaining about 100 feet of altitude during the climb after takeoff. The aircraft struck the ground left prop and left wing tip first, in an inverted flight attitude. During the post accident investigation, the right engine power lever was subjected to lab exam and it was found that the lower aft part of the lift gate detent was worn. This created a ramping effect between the rounded edge of the lift gate and the flight idle stop. A worn lift gate detent would allow the power lever to inadvertently be moved into the beta range, causing asymmetrical drag and degraded airplane performance, particularly in critical phases of flight. All three occupants were killed.

While enroute to home base after delivery of revenue cargo, the pilot experienced a total loss of engine power in both engines due to fuel exhaustion. The pilot performed emergency procedures and set the aircraft up for a forced landing in a grassy field on the edge of a lake. The aircraft initially impacted a tree and the rocky berm of the shoreline. The contact with the berm caused the landing gear to break off, the aircraft swerved around and skidded backwards before coming to a rest about 150 feet from the lakeshore. Post accident investigation revealed less than 2 gallons of fuel in each wing tank.

The aircraft was at cruise altitude (9,000 feet) for approximately 20 minutes when the pilot reported the loss of right engine power. Chicago ARTCC reported the closest airport was Kalamazoo, 28 miles west. The aircraft began to descend and at 0330:53 Chicago ARTCC reported N554AC was approximately 6 miles from Kalamazoo Airport. The pilot reported 'my right engine cowling is gone...I don't know if I'm going to make it.' Witnesses observed the aircraft at 'tree top level' and impact in a heavily wooded area near interstate 94, 5 miles from the airport. Investigation revealed improper weld repairs to the right engine case and separation of the number 2 cylinder from the case due to fatigue cracking in the through bolts and studs. The top section of the engine cowling separated due to the force of the cylinder separation. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.

A McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82 operating Northwest Airlines flight 255 was destroyed when it crashed onto a road during takeoff from Detroit-Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Michigan, USA. Just one of the 155 occupants survived the accident. Additionally, Two persons on the ground were killed. Flight NW255 was a regularly scheduled passenger flight between Saginaw, Michigan and Santa Ana, California, with en route stops at Detroit and Phoenix, Arizona. About 18:53, flight 255 departed Saginaw and about 19:42 arrived at its gate at Detroit. About 20:32, flight 255 departed the gate with 149 passengers and 6 crewmembers on board. During the pushback, the flightcrew accomplished the BEFORE (engine) START portion of the airplane checklist, and, at 20:33, they began starting the engines. The flight was then cleared to "taxi via the ramp, hold short of (taxiway) delta and expect runway three center [3C] (for takeoff)..." The ground controller amended the clearance, stating that the flight had to exit the ramp at taxiway Charlie. The crew was requested to change radio frequencies. The first officer repeated the taxi clearance, but he did not repeat the new radio frequency nor did he tune the radio to the new frequency. At 20:37, the captain asked the first officer if they could use runway 3C for takeoff as they had initially expected 21L or 21R. After consulting the Runway Takeoff Weight Chart Manual, the first officer told the captain runway 3C could be used for takeoff. During the taxi out, the captain missed the turnoff at taxiway C. When the first officer contacted ground control, the ground controller redirected them to taxi to runway 3C and again requested that they change radio frequencies. The first officer repeated the new frequency, changed over, and contacted the east ground controller. The east ground controller gave the flight a new taxi route to runway 3C, told them that windshear alerts were in effect, and that the altimeter setting was 29.85 inHg. The flightcrew acknowledged receipt of the information. At 20:42, the local controller cleared flight 255 to taxi into position on runway 3C and to hold. He told the flight there would be a 3-minute delay in order to get the required "in-trail separation behind traffic just departing." At 20:44:04, flight 255 was cleared for takeoff. Engine power began increasing at 20:44:21. The flightcrew could not engage the autothrottle system at first, but, at 20:44:38, they did engage the system, and the first officer called 100 knots at 20:44:45. At 20:44:57, the first officer called "Rotate." Eight seconds later, the stall warning stick shaker activated, accompanied by voice warnings of the supplemental stall recognition system (SSRS). The takeoff warning system indicating that the airplane was not configured properly for takeoff, did not sound at any time prior or during takeoff. After flight 255 became airborne it began rolling to the left and right before the left wing hit a light pole in a rental car lot. After impacting the light pole, flight 255 continued to roll to the left, continued across the car lot, struck a light pole in a second rental car lot, and struck the side wall of the roof of the auto rental facility in the second rental car lot. The airplane continued rolling to the left when it impacted the ground on a road outside the airport boundary. The airplane continued to slide along the road, struck a railroad embankment, and disintegrated as it slid along the ground. Fires erupted in airplane components scattered along the wreckage path. Three occupied vehicles on the road and numerous vacant vehicles in the auto rental parking lot along the airplane's path were destroyed by impact forces and or fire. One passenger, a 4-year-old child was injured seriously.

At 14:30 the flight was cleared for a runway 21R visual approach and was cleared to land one minute later, At a height of 60-70 feet the aircraft suddenly yawed violently to the left and banked left 80-90° in a descent. The aircraft then rolled right and struck the ramp area 1,010 feet inside and to the left of the runway 21R threshold. It then skidded 398 feet, struck three ground support vehicles in front of Gate F10 at Concourse F and caught fire. Both pilots and seven passengers were killed, 10 other occupants were injured.

The crew attempted an ILS approach with indefinite ceiling and RVR down to zero due to fog. The copilot was at controls. During a missed approach, the aircraft contacted runway where glideslope intersects terrain with sufficient force to shear all three landing gear. The right engine spolled down during climbout. The crew diverted to Detroit-Metropolitan Airport and complete a gear up landing. Minor fire broke out during ground slide. Both altimeters bench checked within tolerances. All three crew escaped with minor injuries.

N6857E was transporting executives from Holland, MI, to Muskegon. The pilot was executing an ASR approach to runway 06. The MDA is 537 feet agl. Copilot called out 1,200 feet then below 1,000 feet, pilot continued approach. Aircraft struck trees two miles from runway at 15 feet agl. The approach was conducted in heavy fog conditions. The pilot had descended below approach minimums on several occasions in the past. A pilot and two passengers were killed while three other occupants were seriously injured.