WASHINGTON - A United Airlines plane with 112 people aboard was allowed to take off last May despite indications during two previous flights that the cockpit window was overheating, a condition known to cause fires, according to evidence gathered by investigators.
The Boeing 757 was about 30 minutes into a flight from New York to San Francisco when pilots said they heard a hissing noise followed by 14- to 16-inch flames shooting from the cockpit window near the captain, documents released by the National Transportation Safety Board show.
Capt. Boyd Hammack told investigators he used a fire extinguisher to put out the flames. But when they reignited, a flight attendant brought him a second extinguisher, which he emptied on the flames, putting them out again.
Shortly before he made an emergency landing at Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, the inner pane of the window in front of Hammack shattered, the documents show. The first officer safely landed the plane.
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Another United captain who had flown the same plane earlier that day told investigators he reported fumes and an overheated electrical connection when he landed in New York.
Capt. Robert Caponetti told investigators he showed a mechanic an electrical connection that appeared blackened or charred and was hot. He also said the plane had made an unscheduled landing in Las Vegas the previous day because of smoke and fumes.
The mechanic said he OK'd the plane to fly without repairs because United's maintenance manual says planes can be flown another 50 hours after a blackened or burned window-heater electrical connector is found.
"We did a full inspection and believed the plane was flightworthy," United spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said.
