One area that investigators have not been able to get at on the Continental Airlines crash scene at DIA is the condition of the plane’s nose wheel.
National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Robert Sumwalt said Monday that the nose gear collapsed beneath the plane during the crash sequence Saturday.
Sumwalt said it appeared to investigators that the four main landing gear tires were inflated at least until Continental Flight 1404 departed Denver International Airport’s Runway 34R about 2,650 feet from the threshold, or beginning, of the runway.
Air safety experts say the NTSB needs to verify the condition of the two nose-wheel tires as well, because a blown tire or other problem with the nose gear could have affected the Continental pilots’ ability to keep the plane on the runway centerline during takeoff.
The jet lost its main landing gear in the accident and sits on its belly about 2,000 feet from the runway. For investigators to get access to the nose gear and other systems on the plane’s underside, the wrecked jet must first be removed from the site for further examination.
NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said Tuesday that the wreckage would not be removed until after Christmas.
He also said that investigators hope to complete most of the on-scene investigation of the Continental crash today.
The jet crashed Saturday night, injuring 38 of the 115 passengers and crew members aboard. There were no fatalities.
All but five of those injured had been released by Monday from Denver-area hospitals.
Sumwalt said preliminary examinations found no anomalies with the plane’s engines or braking system.
He said one additional area of inquiry for investigators would be to get more precise data on weather conditions about the time of the accident.
The Federal Aviation Administration reported that winds at DIA at the time were from the west at 27 knots, or about 31 mph.
Experts say such readings often are taken at a point near the center of the airfield, which might not take into account varying wind conditions on the runways.
Sumwalt said DIA has a low-level wind-shear sensor close to where the wrecked plane came to rest, and he suggested investigators would seek additional data from that sensor.
Wind conditions reported by the FAA amounted to a crosswind that pilots of a plane taking off to the north, such as Flight 1404, would have to account for. Where possible, pilots take off and land into the wind.
There are crosswind limits set by aircraft manufacturers and airlines — crosswind speeds high enough to keep pilots from taking off — and more precise measurements of wind speed and direction on Runway 34R could help determine whether that limitation was being approached on the night of the accident.
Sumwalt did say that there were no other pilot reports of excessive crosswind or wind shear close to the time Continental Flight 1404 started its takeoff roll.
Jeffrey Leib: 303-954-1645 or jleib@denverpost.com
