Colorado Aviation Accidents & Incidents

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn October 13, 2015, at 1134 mountain daylight time (MDT), a Beech G35 airplane, N394CW, collided with terrain near Eaton, Colorado. The commercial rated pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by a private individual under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from the Lyons-Rice County Municipal Airport (LYO), Lyons, Kansas, at 0918 central daylight time (CDT) and was destined for the Greeley-Weld County Airport (GXY), Greeley, Colorado.

The LYO airport manager stated that the accident airplane was purchased by a new owner on October 10, 2015, who rented a hangar at LYO to store the airplane. On the morning of the accident the owner arrived at LYO about 0800. The airport manager helped the owner pull the airplane out of the hangar and service the main fuel tanks with a total of 17.4 gallons of 100 low-lead fuel. The new owner had never moved or fueled the airplane. The manager added that the accident pilot was not present during the fueling process. The pilot and the owner departed after 0900 and were flying to GXY for a meeting.

Several witnesses reported observing the accident airplane overhead and the engine made a "sputtering" sound as if it was running out of fuel. The airplane was flying north and then turned west when it began to "nose dive" out of sight. The witnesses found the airplane crashed in a harvested corn field.

A review of the radar information revealed the airplane departed LYO at 0918 CDT and proceeded northwest. At 1127 MDT the airplane approached GXY from the southeast and proceeded north, tracking about 400 ft agl above the runway. The airplane climbed to 900 ft agl and continued northbound. About 8 miles north of GXY the airplane was about 1,100 ft agl, then entered a left turn and descended. At 1134 MDT, the last radar point showed the airplane on a southwest heading about 350 ft agl. The main wreckage was found about 460 ft from the last radar point on a heading of 215 degrees.

About 1130 MDT, two GXY airport employees heard an expletive on the universal communications (UNICOM) radio. There were no other transmissions or formal contact over the UNICOM radio. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot, age 35, held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single engine land, multi-engine land, and airplane single engine sea and instrument airplane. He also held flight instructor certificate with a rating for single engine airplane. On March 13, 2014, the pilot received a first class Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) medical certificate with no limitations; however, it was valid as a third class medical certificate at the time of the accident. At the time of the exam, the pilot reported his flight experience included 290.9 total hours with 50.8 hours in the last six months.

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