Colorado Aviation Accidents & Incidents

On August 4, 1999, approximately 1315 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N733CK, was substantially damaged when it departed the runway during landing roll at Centennial Airport, Englewood, Colorado. The student pilot, the sole occupant aboard the airplane, was not injured. The airplane was operated by a private individual under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local solo instructional flight that originated approximately 10 minutes before the accident. No flight plan had been filed.

The student pilot said that this was his second supervised solo, and that he was planning to stay in the traffic pattern to perform touch-and-go landings. He said that while he was on downwind leg, the tower reported a small rain shower over the center of the runway. The student pilot said that the wind had been out of the north, but when he turned final for runway 35L, he had a light left tailwind. He said that when he began to flare the airplane, the wind changed to a right tailwind and "tripled in strength."

The student pilot said that "the right wing of the plane was thrown up at a radical angle." He said the airplane departed the left side of the runway and proceeded down a steep slope, cartwheeled, and came to rest nose down. The unforecasted sudden wind change, and the pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control. A factor was the down sloping terrain next to the runway.