BFO92IA017
1992-01-12 · BALTIMORE, Maryland, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed
Airport BWI
N923HA has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (CESSNA AIRCRAFT CO 525B, built 2008), which was not involved in this event.
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF THE LOW FUEL PRESSURE WARNING SWITCH SNUBBER ON THE #1 ENGINE, RESULTING IN FATIGUE FAILURE OF THE SNUBBER, A FUEL LEAK (SPRAY), AND SUBSEQUENT EXPLOSION/FIRE DAMAGE. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE INCIDENT WAS: INADEQUATE DESIGN OF THE FIREWALL, WHICH ALLOWED FUEL VAPORS TO MIGRATE TO THE HOT SECTION OF THE ENGINE.
Factual narrative
AS THE GEAR & FLAPS WERE RETRACTED AFTER TAKEOFF, THE #1 ENGINE LOW FUEL PRESSURE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. AT ABOUT 400' AGL, A "LOUD BANG" WAS HEARD FOLLOWED BY A #1 ENGINE FIRE WARNING INDICATION. THE ENGINE WAS SHUT DOWN & BOTH FIRE EXTINGUISHING BOTTLES WERE DISCHARGED. THE FLIGHTCREW EXTENDED THE LANDING GEAR BY USING THE ALTERNATE SYSTEM & MADE A NO-FLAP EMERGENCY LANDING. THEY USED EMERGENCY BRAKES, BUT DIRECTIONAL CONTROL WAS LOST & THE AIRCRAFT EXITED THE SIDE OF THE RUNWAY & STOPPED WITH THE FIRE EXTINGUISHED. AN EXAM OF THE #1 ENGINE AREA REVEALED A FAILED LOW FUEL PRESSURE WARNING SWITCH SNUBBER & FIRE DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE, NACELLE & WHEELWELL. THERE WAS EVIDENCE THAT DURING INSTALLATION, THE LOW FUEL PRESSURE WARNING SWITCH SNUBBER WAS TORSIONALLY DEFORMED, THEN FATIGUE & SUBSEQUENT FAILURE OCCURRED. GAPS IN THE FIREWALL ALLOWED LEAKING FUEL (SPRAY) TO ENTER THE HOT SECTION & IGNITE. THIS RESULTED IN AN EXPLOSION & FIRE. FIRE PROPAGATION RESULTED IN BURNED WIRES TO THE #1 STANDBY HYDRAULIC PUMP & A RUPTERED #2 SYSTEM HYDRAULIC LINE. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1992_BFO92IA017.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.
- TallyAero Live Wire Aviation press
- NTSB CAROL Agency ↗
- NTSB Docket Agency ↗
- Aviation Safety Network Aviation press ↗
- Kathryn's Report Aviation press ↗
- Aviation Herald Aviation press ↗
- AVweb Aviation press ↗
- Pilots of America Community ↗
- Reddit /r/flying Community ↗
- FlightAware Aviation press ↗
- AOPA accident database Aviation press ↗
- Google News News ↗
- DuckDuckGo News ↗
Related research
Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall). All research papers
- NASA NTRS 2026 · Conference Paper Computational Analysis of Steady State Aerodynamics of Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Configuration in Deep Stall
This study presents a computational investigation of steady state aerodynamics of the Subsonic Ultra-Green Aircraft Research (SUGAR) Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) configuration over a wide range …
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint Automating Bird Diverter Installation through Multi-Aerial Robots and Signal Temporal Logic Specifications
This paper tackles the task assignment and trajectory generation problem for bird diverter installation using a fleet of multi-rotors.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint Variation of Critical Crystallization Pressure for the Formation of Square Ice in Graphene Nanocapillaries
Two-dimensional square ice in graphene nanocapillaries at room temperature is a fascinating phenomenon and has been confirmed experimentally.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint Polycrystallinity enhances stress build-up around ice
Damage caused by freezing wet, porous materials is a widespread problem, but is hard to predict or control. Here, we show that polycrystallinity makes a great difference to the stress build-up process…
- arXiv 2022 · arXiv preprint Enhanced Prediction of Three-dimensional Finite Iced Wing Separated Flow Near Stall
Icing on three-dimensional wings causes severe flow separation near stall. Standard improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) is unable to correctly predict the separating reattaching flow due…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2021 · Journal article (JAAER) Analysis on the Negative Emotional, Physiological, and Cognitive Responses Elicited from of the Activation of a Stall Alarm
Failing to identify an aerodynamic stall can lead to the inability of an aircraft to sustain flight. To warn pilots of an impending or fully-developed stall, many aircraft have safety devices installe…