Bombardier Q400 Safety Record
In light of the crash of Colgan Air flight 3407, the Bombardier Q400's safety record has come under scrutiny by the public. When taking a look at the safety records of the Bombardier Q400 (officially known as the Dehaviland DHC-8-400) it is shown that the safety of the Bombardier Q400 (DH8D) is very good. In the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) incident database there are only 4 incidents in the database since the aircraft was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on January 26, 2000 (as of the date of this article). Only one had to do with the Bombardier Q400's systems. Outside the United States the Bombardier Q400's safety regarding it's landing gear also came to light when SAS Scandinavian Airlines had a reoccurring problem in 2007 with the landing gear collapsing or not fully extending on landing; no one was hurt in these incidents. The issue was mostly isolated to SAS's procedures and was resolved by Bombardier rather quickly. The only fatal crash is the Colgan Air one, which was determined by the NTSB that the flight crew was at fault, confirming the Bombardier Q400's safety. De-icing systems on the Bombardier Q400 were confirmed to safely work in a proper manner.
Bombardier Q400 Turboprop Safety Record Overview:
The Bombardier Q400 was built under the Dehavilland Dash-8 series, a series of planes made to be the most versatile regional turboprop. The Dash-8 series aircraft were made to land not only on paved runways, but also on gravel, grass and dirt runways. The Bombardier Q400 continued this theme of durability and continues to be a safe airplane. Comparing the Bombardier Q400 safety records to other aircraft show that it is a safe and reliable aircraft. The aviation community around the world also agrees because it has gained type certificates from many of the government aviation regulators around the world.
Above Bombardier Q400 Safety page photo by Lars Plougmann on Flickr. Photo (only) released under a Creative Commons License.
Here is some of the data used to contribute on this report about the Bombardier Q400 safety record:
Bombardier Q400 Safety Incident Reports from the NTSB (Docket Numbers):
WPR11LA042
DCA09MA027
SEA03FA024
SEA02IA044
Denmark Accident Investigation Board Final Report on SAS (Scandinavian Airlines) Bombardier Q400 Landing Gear problem:
Denmark Report on SAS Q400 Safety Landing Gear (Adobe PDF File)
Bombardier Aerospace Press Releases on landing gear events:
Bombardier Statement Regarding The Sas Decision On Its Q400 Aircraft Fleet
Note: The Bombardier Q400 Safety Record is also known as the De Havilland Dash-8-400 Safety Record, DH4 Safety Record, DH8D Safety Record, De Havilland DHC-8-400 Safety Record and the De Havilland Canada Dash-8-400 Safety Record. These are the other names for the Bombardier Q400 Safety Record.
