# NTSB CEN26LA254: Tag Aviation PTY Titanium Explorer, N665TE, Larkspur, CO, July 13, 2026

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · Fatal · Class 3 · Limited · Preliminary report
- Date: July 13, 2026, 08:00 local (14:00 UTC)
- Place: Larkspur, CO
- Coordinates: 39.2286, -104.8872 (estimated)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.2286&lon=-104.8872&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Unknown](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/990) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Unknown: Loss of control in flight](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240)
- Highest injury: Fatal
- Injuries: 1 fatal
- Status: Investigation ongoing
- Investigation class: Class 3
- NTSB office: Central Region
- Parties: FAA
- NTSB case key (mKey): 203391
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN26LA254
- NTSB preliminary report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/203391/pdf
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN26LA254

## Preliminary report

On July 13, 2026, about 800 mountain daylight time, a Tag Aviation Pty Ltd Titanium Explorer gyrocopter, N665TE was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Larkspur, Colorado. The pilot passed away in the hospital five days after the accident. The gyrocopter was operated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. According to a friend of the pilot, the pilot flew the gyrocopter from Meadowlake Airport (FLY) Peyton, Colorado, to Central Colorado Airport (AEJ) Buena Vista, Colorado, 4 days before the accident. The pilot and his friend flew their respective gyrocopters around the Buena Vista area several times during that four-day period. The friend said that the gyrocopter was performing normally. On the morning of July 13th, the pilot filled the fuel tank with 91 Octane motor gas before he departed back toward FLY. The friend said that the pilot planned to circumnavigate Davis Airfield (AFF) Colorado Springs, Colorado, to the north and then fly back toward the east toward Peyton, Colorado. The pilot departed AEJ about 700. While enroute, he called another friend on his cellular phone to let him know that he was flying over Lake George in Park County, Colorado. He told the friend that everything was fine and he would call him again when he landed safely at FLY. About 800, a witness walking her dog outside her home said that she heard the gyrocopter fly overhead. She said the gyrocopter was low and the engine was “struggling.” Then, the engine stopped and the gyrocopter fell through the trees. She reported that the pilot was conscious but not speaking and that fuel was dripping out of the fuel tank. The gyrocopter was relatively intact and came to rest on its right side under a group of trees. The rotor blades were bent and cracked. One of the rotor blade tips was sheared off. The three-bladed propeller was still attached at the hub, and the blades were flat and smooth. The needle on the Aviasport gyro rotor tachometer was fully in the red zone at 500 rpm. According to the engine and airframe logbooks, N665TE would have been due for an annual condition inspection in September 2026. At the time of the accident, the airframe had accumulated about 50 hours, and the engine had accumulated about 400 hours. The gyrocopter was retained for further examination.

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Unknown: Loss of control in flight](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240) (defining event); cases with it: [James P Schmidt SCHMIDT TITANIUM EXP, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence.md?model=0564259), [All aircraft, 5,002 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence.md)

## Aircraft

- Registration: [N665TE](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N665TE), registered now, S/N 0066-0125, built 2025 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: Tag Aviation PTY LTD Titanium Explorer
- Registry model: [James P Schmidt SCHMIDT TITANIUM EXP](https://openairdocs.org/model/james-p-schmidt-schmidt-titanium-exp) (registry code 0564259) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [Rotax 914ULS](https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-914uls) (registry code 55552, 4 cycle) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Gyroplane, amateur-built
- Serial number: 0066-0125
- Year built: 2025
- Airframe hours: 50
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Flight: Personal, Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed: AEJ, Buena Vista, CO
- Destination: FLY, Peyton, CO
- Airport: CO93, Perry Park
- Equipment: Unknown

## Weather

- Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day
- Wind: 110° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling: none
- Temperature: 66 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter: 30.38 inHg
- Observed at: KCOS, 27 nm away
- METAR: KCOS 131354Z 11005KT 10SM CLR 19/13 A3038

## FAA reports on this event (1)

The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20260713007259A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20260713007259A), Jul 13, 2026: James P Schmidt SCHMIDT TITANIUM EXP, Larkspur, CO, Destroyed. While conducting part 91 flight operations 4.5 miles west of Larkspur, CO - pilot experienced a loss of engine power and landed in mountainous terrain. The…

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.