- Date
- May 25, 1993, 21:45 local (May 26, 1993, 03:45 UTC)
- Place
- Westcliffe, CO
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N5741QMooney M20E
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report November 3, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930525015289A
- Case key
- 18249
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 loss of aircraft control as he attempted to turn away from a line of thunderstorms. Factors were thunderstorms and associated turbulence.
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 instrument rated pilot obtained a weather briefing that indicated visual meteorological conditions prevailed at durango and denver, and was forecast along his proposed route of flight. The pilot filed an IFR flight plan and was cleared to maintain VFR on top. The flight departed durango at 2045 and proceeded without known difficulty until it was over the sangre de cristo mountains near Westcliffe, Colorado. Radar data showed the airplane in a left turn and descending out of 16,400 feet. The wreckage was located the following morning at the 11,900 foot level. A sheriff's deputy reported that although visual meteorological conditions prevailed at Westcliffe, thunderstorms were active along the mountain range at about the time of the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5741Q
- Reported as
- Mooney M20E
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 729
- Airframe hours
- 5,208
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A1A, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Scamman, James P.
- Registered owner
- Scamman, James P.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 5, 1993 · 23 hours before
- Departed
- DRO · Durango, CO
- Destination
- DEN · Denver, CO
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 54
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,700 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N5741Q · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.