Colorado Aviation Accidents & Incidents

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn April 2, 2018, at an unknown time, a Cessna 210A airplane, N68640, impacted mountainous terrain 5 miles west of Alma, Colorado. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was substantially damaged. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 without a flight plan. The flight departed Erie Municipal Airport (KEIK) Erie, Colorado, about 0815 mountain daylight time, and was en route to Richmond Municipal Airport (KRIF) Richmond, Utah.

The evening before the accident, one witness assisted the pilot with pushing his airplane back onto the taxiway after the left brake locked up. The pilot and witness had a short discussion about how neither the pilot nor his airplane had flown in over a year.

Also, on the evening before the accident, the pilot called a tow truck company around 1900, and requested assistance with his airplane. The pilot told the tow truck driver, who responded to the airport, that he hit the wrong lever and the nose landing gear collapsed. The tow truck driver stated that the pilot placed a soft strap around the fuselage/cowling, and the tow truck driver helped him lift the airplane. The tow truck driver did not see any visible fuselage or cowling damage. The pilot told the tow truck driver that he was going to have a mechanic look at it the next morning.

The pilot's brother dropped the pilot off at KEIK the morning of the accident. The brother planned to drive to Utah and meet the pilot at KRIF that afternoon. An Airframe and Powerplant mechanic at KRIF spoke briefly with the pilot that morning about 0815 and understood the pilot was departing at that time. The witness who had helped the pilot the night before saw the pilot conduct a long engine run up, about 15 minutes in duration. The airplane then departed.

When the pilot's brother arrived at KRIF, neither the airport manager nor the mechanic had seen the pilot or the airplane at KRIF.

The airplane was subsequently reported missing and an ALNOT was issued at 1702. Search efforts found primary radar targets and cellular telephone triangulation data, consistent with the accident flight, as late as 0932 on the day of the accident. The exact route of flight and altitudes could not be determined. Search efforts were suspended indefinitely on April 6, 2018, due to inclement weather conditions in the search area. The wreckage was found by hikers on July 13, 2018. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot's flight logbook was not located during the investigation. On the pilot's most recent medical certificate application, dated June 27, 2006, the pilot reported 650 total hours of flight time, 30 hours of which were recorded in the previous 6 months. The pilot's brother estimated that it had been at least 2 years since the pilot had flown.

According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airman records, an Emergency Order of Suspension was issued on July