- Date
- October 31, 1992, 08:15 local (15:15 UTC)
- Place
- Grand Junction, CO
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N250TJPiper PA-42
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 14, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921031044509A
- Case key
- 18240
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
Improper IFR procedure and resultant disorientation which resulted in a collision with terrain.
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 commuter air carrier departed moab, Utah, and flew to Grand Junction, CO, via RNAV direct macks intersection. After crossing macks intersection, the airplane turned right but instead of intercepting the localizer course, the airplane continued on a slightly divergent track to the east of the localizer. The pilot told control tower personnel, 'I'm showing twelve miles out on the ILS...getting real...erroneous signal, here. Any complaints?' The pilot was advised no difficulty reports had been received. The airplane impacted a mesa one minute later about five miles to the left of the localizer course. The cockpit was destroyed and no meaningful information was obtained from the navigational radios. All of the airport's navigational aids were later flight checked and no discrepancies were found. Although VMC prevailed at the airport, the accident site was above the reported ceiling height.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N250TJ
- Reported as
- Piper PA-42
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 42-8001024
- Airframe hours
- 4,784
- Engine
- P&W PT6A-41, 720 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Alpine Aviation, doing business as Alpine Air
- Registered owner
- Clb Corporation
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · October 15, 1992 · 43 hours before
- Departed
- OAB · Moab, UT
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- GJT · Walker Field
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
- 35
- Certificates
- Commercial, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 4,700 total · 225 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 11 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 2,400 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 43 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- GJT, 10 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.