Skip to content

ATL90LA080

1990-03-15 · ANDERSON, South Carolina, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport AND

Current FAA registration · N100VQ

Make / Model
LEARJET INC 24
Engine
GE CJ610-SER (2700 hp)
Seats / Engines
8 seats · 2 engines
Last airworthiness date
19670722
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A0069E

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

ELECTRICAL ARCING WHICH RESULTED FROM A SHORT IN THE PILOT'S MAP LIGHT CIRCUIT; A CHAFTED WIRE CONTACTED THE OXYGEN SUPPLY LINE AT THE OXYGEN CONTROL PANEL IN THE COCKPIT. A FACTOR IN THE ACCIDENT WAS THE INADEQUATE DESIGN OF THE OXYGEN PANEL PLUMBING AND ELECTRICAL WIRING FOR THE PILOT'S MAP LIGHT WHICH ALLOWED CONTACT BETWEEN THE TWO SYSTEMS.

Factual narrative

WHILE CRUISING AT 42,000 FEET, THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO ADUST HIS MAP LIGHT WHEN THE CIRCUIT BREAKER POPPED. WHEN THE COPILOT RESET THE BREAKER A FIRE IGNITED AT THE OXYGEN PANEL. THE BLOWTORCH EFFECT CAUSED EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO THE LEFT INTERIOR AT THE PILOT'S STATION. TWO PASSENGERS WERE HOSPITALIZED FOR SMOKE INHALATION. EXAMINATION OF THE DAMAGED AREA DISCLOSED THAT A WIRE FROM THE LIGHT ASSEMBLY ARCED AND CONTACTED AN OXYGEN SUPPLY LINE. FURTHER EXAMINATION ALSO DISCLOSED LOOSE OXYGEN LINES ADJACENT TO THE ARCING. SUBSEQUENT TO THE MISHAP, LEARJET DEVELOPED A PROTECTION KIT TO PREVENT CONTACT BETWEEN THE OXYGEN LINES AND ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1990_ATL90LA080.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type. All research papers