| Status |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
| Date | Monday 18 March 1996 |
| Time | 08:00 LT |
| Type |
 Airbus A320-211 |
| Operator | Northwest Airlines |
| Registration | N340NW |
| MSN | 372 |
| Year of manufature | 1992 |
| Engines | Cfm CFM56-5-A1 |
| Crew | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: |
| Passengers | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: |
| Total occupants | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 110 |
| Aircraft damage | None |
| Location | Detroit, MI  United States of America
|
| Phase | En route |
| Nature | Unknown |
| Departure Airport | , MI (KDTW) |
| Destination Airport | Fort Lauderdale, FL |
| Narrative | The captain reported that the crew leveled at flight level 370 and received an elevator aileron computer (ELAC) number two pitch fault message. The message cleared itself. A few minutes later they received servo fault message. The 'pitch jumped /- 100 feet.' The crew descended to flight level 350. During the level off they received an ELAC number one pitch fault message. The crew declared an emergency and landed uneventfully. The aircraft maintenance log revealed a similar occurrence on the previous flight. Investigation revealed an intermittent fault in the elevator servo controller electrovalve coil and a defective diode in the electronic module for one of the stabilizer actuators. The defective diode produced an intermittent loss of electrical motor power during transient, closed loop control of the actuator. Probable Cause: a defective diode in the number two stabilizer actuator that produced an intermittent loss of electrical motor power during transient, closed loop control of the actuator. A factor was the intermittent open circuit in the elevator servo controller electrovalve coil. |
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