Colorado Aviation Accidents & Incidents

HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn September 15, 2017, about 2010 mountain daylight time, a Cirrus SR22 airplane, N462SR, impacted trees and mountainous terrain while maneuvering near Glenwood Springs, Colorado. The non-instrument-rated private pilot and three passengers were fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed. The airplane was owned by Lind's Plumbing and Heating, Inc., Fort Collins, Colorado, and was being operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and a visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan was filed for the personal cross-country flight, which from Fort Collins-Loveland Municipal Airport (FNL), Fort Collins/Loveland, Colorado, about 1920, and was destined for Canyonlands Field Airport (CNY), Moab, Utah.

According to air traffic control information from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the pilot was receiving VFR flight-following services during the flight. Radar track data indicated that the airplane departed and traveled on a southwesterly heading toward the destination. At 1925, the pilot stated to the controller that he was going to climb the airplane to 15,000 ft mean sea level (msl) to "get over the mountains and then back down." At 1928, the airplane turned to a southwesterly direct heading to CNY at an indicated altitude about 10,700 ft msl. By 1932, the airplane had climbed to 13,200 ft and stopped climbing. From 1940 to 2000, radar data showed the airplane on a southwest heading with a series of altitude changes between 13,200 ft and 10,500 ft. At 2004, about 10 miles northeast of Glenwood Springs, Colorado, the airplane turned to the northwest, at an altitude of 11,500 ft msl, and continued northwest for about 12 miles (See Figure 1).





Figure 1 Entire Flight Radar Track




At 2008, a passenger sent a text message to her mother, "Taking the long way around, lots of weather, keep you posted." From 2008:32 to 2009:08, the airplane was in a gradual left turn to the southwest, descending from 11,500 ft to 11,300 ft, then climbing to 11,400 ft. The last recorded radar return was at 2009:32 at an altitude of 11,400 ft msl and about 1/4 mile south of the accident site (See Figure 2).





Figure 2 Radar Flight Track - Final Segment



Later that evening, family members reported the airplane was overdue to CNY, and a search was initiated. Search and rescue personnel located the accident site in mountainous terrain at 1137 the following morning. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONA review of FAA records revealed that the pilot obtained his private pilot certificate on March 1, 2017. The pilot did not hold an instrument rating; his logbook revealed that he had accumulated 2.4 hours in simulated instrument conditions.

The pilot's logbook contained an entry for a flight on May 2, 2017, that contained the pilot's remarks, "First flight over clouds where I could not see the ground (CO Springs)."

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