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Japan Air Lines Flight 813

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Coordinates: 37°40′N 122°26′W / 37.667°N 122.433°W / 37.667; -122.433
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Japan Air Lines Flight 813
The aircraft involved in this incident
Incident
DateDecember 25, 1965
SummaryEngine explosion due to maintenance error[1]
SiteSan Francisco, California, United States
37°40′N 122°26′W / 37.667°N 122.433°W / 37.667; -122.433
Aircraft
Aircraft typeDouglas DC-8-33
Aircraft nameKamakura
OperatorJapan Air Lines
RegistrationJA8006
Flight originSan Francisco International Airport, United States
StopoverHonolulu International Airport, United States
DestinationHaneda International Airport, Japan
Occupants41
Passengers31
Crew10
Fatalities0
Injuries0
Survivors41

Japan Air Lines Flight 813 (Douglas DC-8-33) en route from San Francisco International Airport to Tokyo International Airport experienced an explosion in its number one engine shortly after takeoff. The pilot made an emergency landing at Oakland International Airport across the Pacific, and all 41 passengers and crew were safe.[2][3][4]

Flight Details

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Aircraft

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The aircraft involved in the accident, a Douglas DC-8-33 (JA8006), was manufactured on 2 May 1961 with the serial number 45626. It had 13,423 flight hours and had logged 21.5 flight hours since its last inspection. It was powered by a Pratt & Whitney J75 jet engine.[5]

The No. 1 engine, which exploded, had been overhauled at Japan Airlines' Tokyo factory in August 1965, and was installed on JA8006 on 20 November, returning to service on 24 December. During the overhaul, fatigue cracks were found in the torque ring of the low-pressure compressor, so the ring was replaced.[5]

Crew and passengers

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The captain was a 40-year-old Japanese male who was qualified to fly Convair 880, Douglas DC-4, Douglas DC-6, and Douglas DC-7 in addition to DC-8. The total flight time was 8,031 hours, with 909 hours of experience on the DC-8.[5] The captain at this time was later involved in the hijacking of Japan Air Lines Flight 351.[6][7]

The co-pilot was a 30-year-old Japanese male who was qualified to fly Convair 880, Douglas DC-4, Douglas DC-6, and Douglas DC-7 in addition to DC-8. The total flight time was 8,031 hours, with 909 hours of experience on the DC-8.[5]

The flight engineer was a 41-year-old American male who was qualified to fly the DC-8, Douglas DC-6, and Douglas DC-7, with 14,077 total flight hours, including 1,560 hours in the DC-8.[5]

The aviator (navigator) was a 41-year-old Japanese male. He flew a total of 7,305 hours and had 2,715 hours of experience on the DC-8.[5]

There were 31 passengers on Flight 813, including four deadheads.[5]

The Incident

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At 13:08 PST, Flight 813 took off from runway 01 at San Francisco International Airport. At 13:11, while climbing at 270 knots (500 km/h) and approximately 4,500 feet (1,400 m), the number one engine exploded. The aircraft vibrated violently and rolled to the left. The pilots immediately performed the engine failure checklist, and the vibrations subsided. There was a fire in the number one engine, but the engine was not visible from the cockpit and no fire warnings were issued. The pilots learned of the fire through a flight attendant's report.[5][8][9]

Within a minute of the engine explosion, the pilot declared a mayday and requested permission to make an emergency landing, at which point lateral control was becoming difficult and hydraulic pressure was decreasing.[5][8][9]

At 13:16, the captain decided to head for runway 29 at Oakland International Airport, which offered a more direct approach, rather than making a left turn to return to San Francisco International Airport. At 13:20, Flight 813 successfully landed on runway 29.[5][8][9]

Investigation

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Aircraft Damage

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The No. 1 engine was severely damaged after the explosion and subsequent fire, and nearly half of the left aileron had been torn off by the explosion, while hydraulic pipes and the No. 2 engine pylon were damaged by flying debris.[10][5]

Investigation revealed that the outer casing of the No. 1 engine's low-pressure compressor had been shattered and separated from the engine, the forward section of the engine cowling had also been separated, and all stages of the low-pressure compressor were destroyed.[5]

Final Report

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Structural diagram of the JT4A-9 engine

The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigated the accident, determined that the cause of the accident was failure of an operator to properly secure the torque ring on the low-pressure compressor during an engine inspection and overhaul.[1][5][8][9][10]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Accident Douglas DC-8-33 JA8006, Saturday 25 December 1965". Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
  2. ^ "Maintenance Cited in Jal Engine Blast". Aviation Week & Space Technology. No. 19680108. January 8, 1968. pp. 88–89. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  3. ^ "Air Accident Investigation Report Japan Airlines Douglas DC-8 EN8006 San Francisco Califonya 1965.12.25" (Report). Ministry of Transport. November 29, 1967.
  4. ^ Yamamoto, Yoshiaki (2001). 『 Japan Aviation Accident Handling 』. Kodansha. ISBN 9784062720649.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Aircraft Accident Report: Japan Air Lines, Ltd., Douglas DC-8-33, JA8006, San Francisco, California, December 25, 1965 (PDF) (Report). National Transport Safety Board. June 26, 1967. pp. 2–7, 9–11, 17–18.
  6. ^ Kato, Tokio; Ueda, Tsuneo (1986). 『 Message from the Captain ― Love humans, machinery and nature 』. Kenkaku Business.
  7. ^ "Raw of the Nippon Captain, safe "landing". 『 Asahi Newspaper 』. Asahi. March 19, 1985.
  8. ^ a b c d Yanagita, Kunio (1986). 『 Mach's fear 』. Shinten Bunko. pp. 367–369. ISBN 9784101249056.
  9. ^ a b c d Yanagita, Kunio (1986). 『 Following Mach's Fear 』. Shinshuang. pp. 463–465. ISBN 9784101249063.
  10. ^ a b 『 Jet Pilot ― International Captain 』. Pecans. 1974.
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