- Date
- March 10, 1991, 11:00 local (18:00 UTC)
- Place
- Sterling, CO
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N4179SBeech F33A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 3, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910310004779A
- Case key
- 18016
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
Poor judgement of the pilot and his misjudgement of altitude while buzzing over glassy water. His lack of visual ques to judge altitude over glassy water was a related factor.
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
A young pilot and his passenger friend were observed `buzzing' the Sterling, Colorado, water reservoir. The witnesses stated that the aircraft was skimming the glassy surface of the water when it struck the water, pitched up abruptly, then nosed down until it impacted the water and sank.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4179S
- Reported as
- Beech F33A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- CE-572
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-BA, 285 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Alfred Ward & Son
- Registered owner
- Alfred Ward & Son
- Departed
- AKO · Akron, CO
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
- 20
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 297 total · 5 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.