CRJ900 FLT CREW REPORTS TIRE FAILURE AT ROTATION CAUSING DAMAGE TO FLAPS AND ACFT SYSTEMS. EMERGENCY DECLARED AND SAFE LANDING ENSUES.

Narrative

TKOF WT WAS 81300 LBS; FLAPS 8 DEGS; STABILIZER TRIM 6.8. AS WE ROTATED; IT FELT AS THOUGH WE HIT A VERY SMALL BUMP SUCH AS A SEAM OF CONCRETE. AT THE SAME TIME WE GOT A CAUTION MESSAGE 'ANTI-SKID INBOARD;' AND A STATUS MESSAGE 'INBOARD GND SPOILER FAULT.' WE SOON RECEIVED A CALL FROM OUR FLT ATTENDANT WHERE SHE DESCRIBED A LOUD 'FLAPPING NOISE' AND DESCRIBED HEARING A 'BANG' UPON OUR ROTATION. AT THIS TIME A VIBRATION BECAME EVIDENT IN THE AIRFRAME; MOSTLY THE FLOOR; BUT ALSO THE SIDEWALLS; RUDDER PEDALS AND YOKE. WE CONTINUED THE TKOF IN NORMAL FASHION AND WHEN CLR OF TFC AND DONE WITH THE 'AFTER TKOF CHK;' WE WENT INTO THE EMER CHKLIST AND STARTED OUR ANALYSIS OF THE SITUATION. WE INFORMED DEP THAT WE SUSPECTED THAT WE HAD BLOWN A TIRE AND SUSPECTED STRUCTURAL DAMAGE DUE TO VIBRATION AND PLANNED TO RETURN TO ZZZ; THOUGH AT THIS TIME WE SIMPLY WANTED TO SPEND TIME HOLDING IN ORDER TO FURTHER ANALYZE THE SITUATION. ATC WAS VERY HELPFUL. THEY GAVE US SIMPLE HDGS TO FOLLOW THAT HELPED RELIEVE OUR WORKLOAD. THEY DECLARED AN EMER ALREADY FOR US; INFORMED ZZZ ARPT; GATHERED INFO; CLRED AIRSPACE; CLRED FREQS; ROLLED THE TRUCKS -- AND DID ALL OF THIS QUIETLY BEHIND THE SCENES; ALLOWING US ALL THE TIME AND SPACE WE NEEDED TO ADEQUATELY PREPARE OURSELVES FOR WHAT AT THIS TIME WAS STILL THE 'UNKNOWN.' WE WERE INFORMED THAT A TIRE HAD BLOWN AND PIECES FELL; THOUGH THE 'PIECES' WERE NOT YET IDENTED. WE CONTACTED OUR DISPATCH; MAINT; THE COMPANY GND STATION; FLT ATTENDANTS AND INFORMED THE PAX. WE SLOWED OUR AIRSPD TO KEEP DAMAGE TO A MINIMUM. WE KEPT CONFIGN CHANGES TO A MINIMUM; AND EFFECTIVELY WENT THROUGH EVERY SCENARIO WE COULD THINK OF. I SUSPECTED THAT A PIECE OF TIRE HAD HIT AGAINST THE ACFT AND RESULTED IN SEPARATION OF SKIN; THOUGH WHERE WAS UNKNOWN. ALL OF OUR MAJOR SYS WERE WORKING NORMALLY. WE AGREED THAT WHATEVER IT WAS WOULD ONLY BECOME WORSE WITH CONFIGN CHANGES; WHICH WOULD RESULT IN URGENCY TO LAND. WE DECIDED WE WOULD NOT MAKE ANY CHANGES UNTIL WITHIN THE ARPT ENVIRONMENT WHERE EMER EQUIP WAS AVAILABLE. WE FLEW AT 200 KTS FOR MOST OF THE FLT. THIS WAS DECIDED BECAUSE OF THE FLUTTER AND VIBRATION THAT WAS NOTED. OUR BURNOFF WAS MINIMAL AT THIS SPD AND WE DECIDED NOT TO CHANGE CONFIGN TO INCREASE OUR BURN DUE TO THE UNKNOWNS OF THE EXTENT OF THE DAMAGE. IT APPEARED IT COULD HAVE BEEN AN EXPLOSIVE TYPE OF TIRE SEPARATION SINCE WE RECEIVED THE INBOARD GND SPOILER FAULT. PERSONALLY; I IMAGINED A PIECE MUST HAVE HIT THE WING HARD ENOUGH TO CAUSE A SENSOR TO (UN)ALIGN SO IF THERE WAS A BIG HOLE IN THE UNDERSIDE OF THE WING OR FLAP SOMEWHERE (OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING) WAS CAUSING THE FLUTTER/VIBRATIONS IN THE AIR STREAM; WE DIDN'T WANT TO MAKE IT WORSE. WE WERE FLYING AND WANTED TO KEEP IT THAT WAY. WE DID LOWER OUR SLATS (AT THE SUGGESTION OF THE FO) ONCE WE DETERMINED THEY WERE UNAFFECTED. THIS LOWERED THE STALL SPD AND SEEMED TO HELP THE VIBRATION. WE DECIDED WE WOULD ALSO DO A 'FLY BY' FIRST FOR DAMAGE ASSESSMENT -- MAINLY TO IDENT WHICH SIDE THE BLOWN TIRE WAS ON; AND WHAT OTHER DAMAGE MAY BE SEEN BY THE TWR. THE 'FLY-BY' WAS A SUCCESS. WE WERE CLRED TO FLY AS CLOSE TO THE TWR AS WE FELT COMFORTABLE; WITH THE (VERY GOOD) SUGGESTION FROM THE TWR TO BANK; IN ORDER TO EXAMINE THE UNDERSIDE. I KEPT MY DISTANCE A BIT; IN ORDER TO REMAIN OVER THE UNPOPULATED AREA OF THE RAMP; IN CASE ANY DEBRIS WOULD COME LOOSE. THE L OUTBOARD TIRE WAS IDENTED WITH NO OTHER APPARENT DAMAGE. (LATER IT WAS KNOWN THAT IT WAS THE L INBOARD TIRE; AND THE L FLAPS WERE DAMAGED. VISIBILITY FROM THE TWR WAS LIMITED AS OUR FLY-BY WAS QUITE FAST SINCE WE WERE STILL KEEPING CONFIGN CHANGES TO A MINIMUM. THEY DID A GREAT JOB ASSISTING US.) THE VIBRATION WAS NOW A HAIR-RAISING SHUDDER SO WE CAME AROUND FOR AN IMMEDIATE LNDG. WE CONFIGURED WITHOUT INCIDENT; MADE A SMOOTH TOUCHDOWN; AND STOPPED. EMER PERSONNEL WERE THERE IMMEDIATELY CHKING FOR HOT SPOTS; AND AVAILABLE IF ANYONE HAD A MEDICAL EMER. THEY REMAINED WITH US UNTIL WE DEPLANED; EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE IN FULL FIRE FIGHTING GEAR AND IT WAS NEARLY 100 DEGS ON THE TARMAC. DUE TO THE LOUD NOISES AND VIBRATIONS IN THE CABIN; I FEARED ELDERLY MAY BE AT RISK FOR A HEART ATTACK; BUT SURPRISINGLY THE PAX WERE CALM AND IN VERY GOOD SPIRITS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT CAUSED THE TIRE TO SEPARATE. I CLOSELY INSPECTED ALL TIRES RIGHT BEFORE THE FLT AND REMEMBER THIS TIRE PARTICULARLY BECAUSE THE SUN WAS IN MY EYES AND I BENT DOWN ONTO MY KNEES TO SEE IT CLEARLY. IT WAS IN NEAR PERFECT CONDITION. NO CRACKS OR SPLITS AT ALL; NOT EVEN MINOR ONES WERE EVIDENT. THERE WAS HARDLY ANY WEAR ON THE TIRE AT ALL. NO FLAT SPOTS; NOTHING. IT STOOD OUT IN MY MIND BECAUSE IT'S NOT OFTEN THAT YOU SEE THEM IN SUCH GREAT CONDITION AND IT MADE ME SMILE. AFTERWARDS; I LOOKED AT THE 2 PIECES THAT DEPARTED THE ACFT ON TKOF AND THE ONE THAT SEPARATED ON TOUCHDOWN. MOST OF THE TIRE; THE TUBE; ETC; WAS STILL INTACT. IT WAS THE RUBBER THAT DECIDED TO LEAVE US.