US officials call for mandatory TPMS on aircraft, following fatal Learjet crash

ERJ staff report (DS)

Washington DC -- The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has called for tyre pressure monitoring equipment to be fitted to all commercial aircraft following its investigation into a 2008 incident in which severely under-inflated tyres led to the deaths of four people and serious injury to two well-known music industry personalities. The Board

In the incident, which took place in September 2008 in South Carolina, the captain, the first officer, and two passengers were killed; while Travis Barker, the drummer of a band called Blink 182 and Adam Goldstein, also known as DJ AM, were both seriously injured. The plane, a Bombardier Learjet Model 60 (N999LJ) was under charter from Global Exec Aviation headed for Van Nuys, California.

The NTSB's investigation revealed that prior to the accident the aircraft was operated while the main landing gear tyres were severely underinflated because of Global Exec Aviation's inadequate maintenance. The underinflation led to the failure of all four of the airplane's main landing gear tyres during takeoff.

As a result, the NTSB recommended to the Federal Aviation Administration to require tyre pressure monitoring systems for all transport category airplanes as well as to make reccomendations on tyre pressure maintenance. Recommendations were also made in relation to the design of thrust reversers on the Learjet.

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Press release from NTSB