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ATL91IA024

1990-11-30 · COLUMBUS, Georgia, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport CSG

Current FAA registration · N185SF

Make / Model
CESSNA A185F
Year of manufacture
1976 · 14 years old at event
Engine
CONT MOTOR IO 520 SERIES (285 hp)
Seats / Engines
6 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19760130
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A154D5

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

A FATIGUE FAILURE OF A SPOT WELD ON THE GAS GENERATOR CASE, WHICH RESULTED IN AN ENGINE EXPLOSION.

Factual narrative

THE PILOT ABORTED A NIGHT TAKE OFF ROLL AFTER THE RIGHT ENGINE EXPLODED. EXAMINATION OF THE RIGHT ENGINE DISCLOSED THAT THE ENGINE COWLING WAS DISPLACED ABOUT 12 INCHES FROM ITS NORMALLY INSTALLED POSITION. FURTHER EXAMINATION INDICATED THAT THE OUTER BYPASS DUCT AND GAS GENERATOR CASE WERE BURST OPEN FROM THE 12:00 TO 5:00 O'CLOCK POSITION. THE RUPTURE OCCURRED AS THE AIRPLANE ACCELERATED THROUGH 84 KNOTS ON THE TAKEOFF ROLL. THE INVESTIGATION DISCLOSED THAT THE GAS GENERATOR FAILED DUE TO SPOT WELD FATIGUE FAILURE, AND THE EXITING GASES UNDER HIGH PRESSURE BURST THE OUTER BYPASS DUCT, CAUSING EXPLOSION DAMAGE. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1990_ATL91IA024.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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