At about 09:02 EDT, a Canadair CL-600-2B19, operated as Comair Flight 5181, suffered a cracked windshield near Nassau, Bahamas. There were no injuries. The operator reported that, during cruise flight at flight level FL270 at .77 mach indicated airspeed, the capts windshield shattered. The cabin did not depressurize and the airplane landed without incident. The original captains window was installed when the plane was manufactured in 1996 and cracked in July 1999 after 6,879 hours and 6,565 cycles. The replacement window cracked in December 1999 after 1,236 hours and 1,068 cycles. This incident happened after 899 hours and 803 cycles. The FAA Service Difficulty Reports revealed 83 reported incidents of cracked windshields on the CL-600 series during the 1990s.
April 10, Nassau, Bahamas / Canadair CL-600
At about 09:02 EDT, a Canadair CL-600-2B19, operated as Comair Flight 5181, suffered a cracked windshield near Nassau, Bahamas. There were no injuries. The operator reported that, during cruise flight at flight level FL270 at .77 mach indicated airspeed, the capts windshield shattered. The cabin did not depressurize and the airplane landed without incident. The original captains window was installed when the plane was manufactured in 1996 and cracked in July 1999 after 6,879 hours and 6,565 cycles. The replacement window cracked in December 1999 after 1,236 hours and 1,068 cycles. This incident happened after 899 hours and 803 cycles. The FAA Service Difficulty Reports revealed 83 report...
Key Takeaways:
- Comair Flight 5181 experienced a cracked windshield during cruise flight near Nassau, Bahamas, but landed safely with no injuries or cabin depressurization.
- This was the third windshield to crack on this specific Canadair CL-600-2B19 aircraft, with previous replacements failing after relatively few operational hours and cycles.
- The incident is indicative of a broader problem, as FAA reports showed 83 cracked windshield incidents on the CL-600 series during the 1990s.
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