- Date
- June 26, 1991, 17:50 local (23:50 UTC)
- Place
- Vail, CO
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N45747Boeing E75N1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 5, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910626024019A
- Case key
- 18105
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
A severe downdraft. A factor was: the pilot's failure to obtain a weather briefing.
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
The flight was the beginning of a 2 month around the world goodwill flight in an open cockpit biplane. Commemorating the same feat accomplished by two russian pilots in 1937. Aboard the airplane was the 1982 soviet aerobatic champion and current coach of the soviet aerobatic team. The airplane was flying below the ridge line, approaching Vail pass (elevation 10,603 ft MSL) on the north side of I 70 at 9200 feet. The pilot said they encountered a severe downdraft, driving the airplane into the ground. A review of weather data showed eight pireps filed for moderate to severe turbulence over the Colorado mountains.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N45747
- Reported as
- Boeing E75N1
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 75-5459
- Engine
- Lycoming R-680-8, 225 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Hays, Carl W.
- Registered owner
- Hays, Carl W.
- Departed
- 0C05 · Mack, CO
- Destination
- 1V5 · Boulder, 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
- 48
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 1,450 total · 349 in this make and model · 1,349 as pilot in command · 38 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 250° at 14 knots
- Visibility
- 40 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- 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.