Incident Occurred In October 2016

The landing gear collapse on a FedEx MD-10-10F, wide-body cargo jet was caused by corrosion that led to fatigue cracking, according to an NTSB report released Thursday.

Shortly after the FedEx MD-10-10F touched down at the Fort Lauderdale – Hollywood International Airport Oct. 28, 2016, the flight crew reported hearing a “bang” as the brakes were applied. The airplane yawed to the left as it decelerated and came to rest on the left side of the runway, followed by a fuel-fed fire on the left wing. The two crewmembers evacuated the plane with one suffering minor injuries during the egress. The plane was damaged beyond economical repair.

Investigators found the failure of the left main landing gear was the result of a metal fatigue crack that initiated within the gear. The crack went undetected and gradually progressed until the gear collapsed.

The NTSB also said the interval of nine years between scheduled overhauls of the main landing gear, which exceeded Boeing’s recommendation of eight years, contributed to the accident. Investigators determined the fatigue crack would likely have been detected during an overhaul. The gear failed eight years and 213 days after its last overhaul.

(Image provided with NTSB news release)

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