Investigators: Dynamic plane's fuel-line was disconnected before fire

The main fuel-supply line of a Dynamic Airways plane had become disconnected before the aircraft caught fire in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., federal investigators said Tuesday.

The National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement that the fuel-line coupling assembly was disconnected in the strut between the wing and engine of the Boeing 767-200. Investigators are still studying the assembly, and examining the plane's flight-data and voice recorders.

Maintenance records showed no action on the fuel coupling immediately before the flight. So far, the engine revealed no evidence of failure. The left engine cowling and left side of the fuselage suffered heat damage, but the fire didn’t penetrate the fuselage.

Flight 405 erupted in fire Thursday about 12:30 p.m. while taxiing for takeoff, bound for Caracas, Venezuela. Other pilots warned the Dynamic crew that the plane was leaking fuel just before the fire. The plane had 90 passengers and 11 crew members aboard, and all were evacuated, including 23 with injuries.

The incident closed the airport for several hours, but flights resumed on one of two runways at 3:15 p.m. The other runway reopened Friday.

Dynamic maintenance records said the plane had been in dry storage about 29 months before the North Carolina-based airline leased it in September 2015, according to investigators.

Dynamic is inspecting the remainder of its fleet to ensure proper installation of the fuel-line coupling assemblies, investigators said.

Investigators expect to complete their on-scene work Tuesday. It could take months longer for conclusions about what caused the incident, with recommendations for how to prevent a recurrence.