Air Florida Flight 90 Research Paper

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Air Florida Flight 90

Robert M. Carton
Principles of Accident Causation
March 31, 2017

Abstract
On January 13, 1982 Air Florida Flight 90 crashed into the 14th Street Bridge and ended in the Potomac River in Washington DC at approximately 1601 e.s.t. The aircraft was a Boeing 737-222 and operated by Air Florida.
Air Florida Flight 90 (N62AF) was set to depart from Washington National Airport with a destination of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, with a layover at Tampa International airport. Flight 90 had 74 passengers and five crew members on board. When the aircraft crashed into the bridge it struck seven vehicles which resulted in four pedestrians killed and four injured.

Introduction
On January 13, …show more content…

Flight 90 had the tail number N62AF. On July 28, 1980 Air Florida purchased the aircraft from United Airlines. Flight 90 was certified and maintained in accordance with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The engines were two Pratt and Whitney JT8D-9A turbo fan. The aircraft had a gross take off weight of 102,300 pounds, maximum takeoff weight of 109,000 pounds. On the day of the accident Flight 90 had 26,000 pounds of Jet A fuel. Flight 90 had the following V speeds: V1 137 knots, Vr 139 knots, and V2 144 knots (National Transportation Safety Board, …show more content…

SIGMET stands for Significant Meteorological Hazards. A SIGMET can be issued for one of four reasons. First, severe icing not associated with thunderstorm activity. Second, severe turbulence not associated with thunderstorm activity. Third, dust storms and sandstorms. Fourth would be volcanic Ash. There is also Convective SIGMETs. Convective SIGMETs include embedded thunderstorms, a line of thunderstorms, surface winds greater then 50 knots, hail with a diameter greater then ¾ inch, and tornadoes (SIGMETs, n.d.). In the case of Air Florida Flight 90 there was only a SIGMET issued. The SIGMET was issued at 1340 and was valid until 1740. The SIGMET

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