- Date
- September 27, 2025, 16:31 local (22:31 UTC)
- Place
- Del Norte, CO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3635APiper PA-60-601P
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 9, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20250927019709A
- Case key
- 201741
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The loss of directional control during landing roll due to a flat tire.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
According to the pilot, the airplane landed on the runway and pulled hard to the right. He attempted to maintain the runway centerline, however, as the airplane slowed down, the airplane continued to pull hard to the right. The airplane exited the runway surface and went into the sage brush. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the lower fuselage. During a post-accident walk around, the pilot noticed that the right main landing gear tire was flat.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3635A
- Reported as
- Piper PA-60-601P
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 61P07748063387
- Built
- 1980
- Airframe hours
- 6,511.6
- Engines
- Lycoming IO-540-AA1A5, 350 horsepower, reciprocatingLycoming IO-540-AA1A5, 350 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Executive/Corporate · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Cady Properties And Leasing LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 21, 2025
- Departed
- HYS · Hays, KS
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- RCV · Astronaut Kent Rominger, runway 06/24, 6,051 × 75 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Electronic primary flight display, Electronic multifunction display, Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Onboard weather
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 55
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- August 29, 2025
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 4,362 total · 253 in this make and model · 4,260 as pilot in command · 71 in the last 90 days · 32 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 12,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.24 inHg
- Observed at
- KRCV, 0.5 nm away
- METAR
- KRCV 272235Z AUTO 12008KT 10SM BKN120 20/M01 A3024 RMK AO2 LTG DSNT S AND W T02011014,M
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 9, 2026, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.1 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.