- Date
- March 5, 1992, 10:02 local (17:02 UTC)
- Place
- New Castle, CO
- Injuries
- 6 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N303CAMitsubishi MU-2B-60
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 26, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920305005099A
- Case key
- 18148
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
An inadvertent stall during an instrument approach with the autopilot engaged. A factor was: the pilot's physical impairment from a prescription drug.
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 airplane impacted mountainous terrain approximately 10.5 DME from the airport while executing a loc-dme instrument approach. The airplane was configured for landing. The elevator trim jackscrew was approximately 18 degrees nose up. The altitude preselect, coupled to the sperry autopilot system, was set at 9,500 feet. Minimum descent altitude until reaching the final approach fix is 9,500 feet. Final approach fix is located at 9.3 DME. Twenty four prescription and nonprescription drugs were found aboard the airplane. The pilot's toxicology report disclosed 0.206 (ug/ml, ug/g) chlorpheniramine, an antihistamine, in his liver fluid. According to an FAA flight surgeon, this would equate to approximately .034 ug/ml in blood. Therapeutic dosage is .01 to .04 ug/ml. The drug is contraindicated for flying due to its capability of producing drowsiness. Chlorpheniramine is an ingredient found in comtrex, one of the drugs found aboard the airplane.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N303CA
- Reported as
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-60
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1516 S.A.
- Engine
- Garrett TPE331-10-511, 778 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Neece, S.R./Geesbreght, J.M.
- Registered owner
- Neece, S.R./Geesbreght, J.M.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- FWS · Fort Worth, TX
- Destination
- RIL · Rifle, CO
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- RIL · Garfield County Regional, runway 26, 7,000 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,265 total · 154 in this make and model · 16 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 8 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,700 ft broken
- Temperature
- 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RIL, 11 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.