NTSB ATL89IA099 — 1989-03-09 · DAYTON, Ohio, United States

N217US has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (BEECH B300, built 2007), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

N217US Boeing 737-201 None

Probable cause & findings

AN EXCESSIVELY WORN OUTFLOW VALVE IN THE CABIN EVIRONMENTAL/PRESSURIZATION SYSTEM THAT RESULTED IN A RAPID CABIN DEPRESSURIZATION.

Factual narrative

A PASSENGER DIED AFTER A RAPID DECOMPRESSION AND EMERGENCY DESCENT. THERE WAS NO DAMAGE TO THE AIRPLANE OR INJURY TO THE REMAINING OCCUPANTS OF THE AIRPLANE. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT AN UNCONTROLLABLE OUTFLOW VALVE RESULTED IN A RAPID DECOMPRESSION AT FL 310. THE OXYGEN MASKS DEPLOYED & THE CPT MADE AN EMERGENCY DESCENT TO 10,000 FT, THEN CONTINUED TO DAYTON, LANDING AT 1740. THE PASSENGER WAS TAKEN TO A DAYTON HOSPITAL AND DIED AT ABOUT 6 HOURS AND 50 MINUTES LATER. THE MONTGOMERY COUNTY CORONER RULED THAT DEATH WAS DUE TO NATURAL CAUSES. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1989_ATL89IA099.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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