- Date
- September 2, 1995, 13:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Westcliffe, CO
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4253ZPiper PA-18-150
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 6, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950902027659A
- Case key
- 19569
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
Failure by the pilot to maintain directional control. A factor was gusting cross winds.
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
During landing roll, following a glider tow flight, gusting cross winds were encountered. The aircraft exited the side of the runway, went down a 20 to 25 degree slope, and nosed over.
Factual narrative
On September 2, 1995, at 1330 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA- 18-150, N4253Z, departed the side of the runway and nosed over during landing roll at Westcliffe, Colorado. The private (commercial glider) pilot was not injured and the aircraft sustained substantial damage. The flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 as a glider tow flight when the accident occurred. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed.
The tow portion of the flight was complete and the pilot was conducting a final landing. According to the pilot, during landing roll, the wind was gusting between 10 and 20 knots from the west and the aircraft deviated to the west and went off the side of the runway. The pilot said there was a slope of 20 to 25 degrees off that side of the runway and the aircraft went down the slope and nosed over.
The nearest weather observation facility was approximately 30 miles away, over a range of 14,000 mountains. Thus the recorded weather is not necessarily indicative of the weather at the accident site.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4253Z
- Reported as
- Piper PA-18-150
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 18-8491
- Airframe hours
- 1,762
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-C2A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Registered owner
- Denver Soaring Council
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 2, 1995 · 64 hours before
- Departed
- 4C03
- Airport
- 4C03 · Silver West, runway 31, 5,650 × 40 ft, dirt
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
- 61
- Certificates
- Commercial, Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 988 total · 80 in this make and model · 877 as pilot in command · 18 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ALS, 30 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.
Other investigations on N4253Z · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.