Narrative:

Shortly after takeoff we received an EICAS caution message avionics fan followed shortly by the smell of electrical fumes the loss of the first officer's mfd and flight director. I assumed pilot flying duties; told the first officer to advise ATC that we were declaring an emergency and were returning to land at our departure airport. Fumes did not seem to be getting stronger; but I directed the first officer to don his oxygen mask. By this time; my flight director had failed and we had heard what sounded like a number of circuit breakers popping. After the first officer had donned his mask; I transferred controls back to him and donned my oxygen mask. We elected to remain at flaps 20 from the takeoff. As we entered downwind I told the flight attendants we were returning to the airport due to fumes in the cockpit. We made a normal landing and exited the runway. I elected to perform an evacuation as the conservative option but was unable to reach the flight attendants via the PA or the normal intercom system. Instead; I opened the cockpit door and commanded the evacuation. The aircraft was evacuated and no injuries were reported by passengers or crew. An off duty flight attendant generously helped during the evacuation with some of the passengers who had limited mobility. Superlative teamwork and job by all involved: my first officer; the flight attendants; passengers; ATC and emergency services. The training received during simulator events for smoke/fumes in the cockpit was invaluable; as well as the experience for various emergency/abnormal situations. Thanks training department!

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A CRJ900 flight crew declared and emergency and returned to their departure airport when multiple avionics displayed failed due to a failed equipment cooling fan.

Narrative: Shortly after takeoff we received an EICAS caution message AVIONICS FAN followed shortly by the smell of electrical fumes the loss of the First Officer's MFD and Flight Director. I assumed pilot flying duties; told the First Officer to advise ATC that we were declaring an emergency and were returning to land at our departure airport. Fumes did not seem to be getting stronger; but I directed the First Officer to don his oxygen mask. By this time; my Flight Director had failed and we had heard what sounded like a number of circuit breakers popping. After the First Officer had donned his mask; I transferred controls back to him and donned my oxygen mask. We elected to remain at flaps 20 from the takeoff. As we entered downwind I told the flight attendants we were returning to the airport due to fumes in the cockpit. We made a normal landing and exited the runway. I elected to perform an evacuation as the conservative option but was unable to reach the flight attendants via the PA or the normal intercom system. Instead; I opened the cockpit door and commanded the evacuation. The aircraft was evacuated and no injuries were reported by passengers or crew. An off duty Flight Attendant generously helped during the evacuation with some of the passengers who had limited mobility. Superlative teamwork and job by all involved: my First Officer; the flight attendants; passengers; ATC and emergency services. The training received during simulator events for smoke/fumes in the cockpit was invaluable; as well as the experience for various emergency/abnormal situations. Thanks Training Department!

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.