- Date
- August 17, 2005, 14:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Cedaredge, CO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N7172KPiper PA-18A-135
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 20, 2005
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA Flight Standards District Office
- FAA report
- 20050817017709A
- Case key
- 62302
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 pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control, and the pilot's improper in-flight planning. Contributing to the accident was the wind shift, resultant tailwind, and the inadvertent stall.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
According to the pilot, he was attempting to land on runway 35. While in the landing flare, the wind shifted from a headwind to a tailwind, resulting in a 15-20 knot tailwind and an increased groundspeed. The pilot stated that he attempted a go-around procedure. The airplane stalled and fell "about 15 feet onto a fence and rocks along the fence", causing substantial damage. According to the pilot, the wind was 160 at 12 knots with gusts of 18 knots and there was light turbulence at the time of the accident.
Factual narrative
On August 17, 2005, at 1430 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-18A-135, N7172K, piloted by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain during a go-around at the Flying W. Ranch Airport (KCO20), Cedaredge, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot and passenger reported no injuries. The cross-country flight originated at Vernal, Utah, at 1300 MDT.
According to the accident report submitted by the pilot, he was attempting to land on runway 35 and had overflown the runway to establish the wind direction. During the landing flare, the wind shifted from a headwind to a tailwind. The pilot stated that this shift in wind direction resulted in a 15-20 knot tailwind and an increased groundspeed. He attempted a go-around procedure and during a turn to avoid trees the airplane stalled and fell "about 15 feet onto a fence and rocks." The fuselage and firewall were both wrinkled, both wing struts bent, and the landing gear torn aft. The pilot reported no anomalies with any of the airplane systems. A further examination of the airplane systems, conducted by the FAA, revealed no anomalies.
The Flying W. Ranch Airport (KCO20) is a private airstrip, owned by the pilot. According to airnav.com, runway 35 is 2,400 feet in length and 50 feet in width, uphill and used only for landing.
At 1430 MDT, the Montrose Regional Airport (MTJ) routine aviation weather report (METAR), which is located 22 NM south of the Flying W. Ranch Airport, issued a special report with the winds reported variable at 6 knots. Thunderstorms were in the vicinity of MTJ at the time of the accident. According to the pilot, the wind was 160 at 12 knots with gusts of 18 knots and there was light turbulence at the time of the accident. The pilot stated there was typical summer afternoon convection in the area but no active cells.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7172K
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18A-135
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-396
- Airframe hours
- 1,924
- Engine
- Lycoming O-290-D2, 135 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 1, 2004 · 55 hours before
- Departed
- VEL · Vernal, UT
- Destination
- CO20 · Cedaredge, CO
- Airport
- CO20 · Flying W. Ranch Airport, runway 35, 2,400 × 50 ft, grass/turf
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
- 64
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 2,768 total · 200 in this make and model · 2,500 as pilot in command · 40 in the last 90 days · 19 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 6 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.15 inHg
- Observed at
- KMTJ, 22 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.