Colorado Aviation Accidents & Incidents

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On August 26, 2012, about 0946 Mountain Daylight Time, a Eberle Fokker DR.1, tri-plane, Experimental Amateur-Built airplane, N152RB, owned by a private individual and operated by an Airline Transport Pilot, was substantially damaged when it departed controlled flight and impacted terrain two miles northeast of Parker, Colorado. The pilot, the sole person on board the airplane was seriously injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight being operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulation Part 91. The cross-country flight originated at Centennial Airport (APA), Englewood, Colorado, about 0941 MDT, and was en route to the Platt Valley Airpark, Fort Lupton, Colorado.

Centennial Airport Air Traffic Control Tower recordings indicated that at 0937:49, the pilot requested and received taxi clearance to runway 17L. At 0940:14, the pilot received clearance for takeoff on runway 17L and an eastbound departure.

At 0942:41, Federal Aviation Administration, Denver Terminal Air Traffic Control Center radar showed the airplane’s 1200 transponder code track parallel to and slightly east of APA runway 17L at 6,200 feet msl. The field elevation at APA was 5,885 feet msl. The airplane made a left turn to an approximate heading of 095 degrees and proceeded on an easterly heading at a groundspeed of about 93 knots. The radar data showed the airplane make a gradual climb to 6,700 feet. At 0946:10, the radar track and altitude showed the airplane initiate a descending left turn. At 0946:18, the radar track stopped over the location where the airplane impacted the ground. The airplane was at 6,400 feet when the radar track stopped. At 0946:31, the target disappeared from radar. The terrain elevation at the accident site was 6,170 feet msl.

A witness who lived in a house at the end of a cul-de-sac near the accident site, heard the airplane heading toward their house. He said that he and his wife went outside to see the airplane just as it was going over. The airplane was traveling west to east and was “probably a couple of hundred feet up”. He said the airplane was yawing to the left as it went over. The witness lost sight of the airplane and went around the house to see the airplane. As he got around the garage, he saw the airplane in a left spiral; about 45 degrees nose down, descending toward the ground. The witness said he lost sight of the airplane when he turned to tell his wife to call 9-1-1. The witness then grabbed a fire extinguisher and went to the accident scene. He said that when the fire and rescue persons arrived, he observed a fire fighter move the airplane’s throttle back to idle and turn off all of the switches in what was left of the airplane’s cockpit.

The wife said that she was in the house when her and husband heard the airplane approach from the west. She said it sounded like it was low to the ground. They went outside to see it. She could hear the a