Swearingen SA226-T N950TT
20 December 1997 · Byers, Colorado, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 20 December 1997 at about 03:17 local time, a Swearingen SA226-T registered N950TT was involved in an accident near Byers, Colorado, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 03:17
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Byers, Colorado, United States
- Coordinates
- 39.7100, -104.2205
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA226-T
- Registration
- N950TT
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Denver → Aspen
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- IMC
- Light
- Night/Dark
- NTSB number
- FTW98FA073
People
1 person died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
The pilot inadvertently stalling the airplane and his subsequent spatial disorientation which prevented him from maintaining airplane control. Factors were excessive workload on the pilot and the dark night light conditions.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot departed Front Range Airport (elevation 5512 feet) at approximately 2008, climbed to 7,000 feet msl, accelerated to 270 knots, and requested his IFR clearance. Weather at the time of N950TT's departure was 500 feet overcast; witnesses reported the tops of the thin cloud condition were 8,500 feet msl and it was very dark on top (no stars or moon). The pilot made several changes in airspeed and climb rate until radar indicated that he had entered an 8,500 fpm decent. The pilot reported to ATC that he had 'stalled' the airplane. Radar indicated that he then climbed at 7,500 fpm until his estimated airspeed was 10 knots, and then subsequently descended again at 8,400 fpm until he impacted the frozen ground. The pilot had flown 4 times for 7 hours in the previous 40 days. Five airline pilots, each of who had 3,000 to 5,000 hours in Swearingens, stated individually that even though the airplane is single pilot certified, they believed that 'its a two pilot airplane--because the work load is too high.'
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Swearingen SA226 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Aug 2001 | Swearingen SA226-T | West Chicago, Illinois, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Dec 2003 | Swearingen SA226-TC | Denver, Colorado, United States | Key Lime | No injuries | - |
| 31 Mar 2004 | Swearingen SA226-T | Omaha, Nebraska, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 20 May 1990 | Swearingen SA226-T(B) | Coeur D'alene, Idaho, United States | Bertea Aviation Inc. | Fatal | - |
| 22 Jun 1988 | Swearingen SA226-TC | Chicago, Illinois, United States | Britt Airways, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 20 May 1986 | Swearingen SA226 | Hutchinson, Kansas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Jun 1997 | Piper PA-32-300T | Del Norte, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 27 Jun 1997 | Piper PA-28-140 | Leadville, Colorado, United States | Michael S. Luther | Minor injuries | - |
| 27 Jun 1997 | Rans S-12 Airaile S-12 | Fort Collins, Colorado, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 27 Jun 1997 | Cessna 305A | Watkins, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 27 Jun 1997 | Cessna 210 | Peyton, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 4 Jul 1997 | Let BLANIK L-13 | Pagosa Springs, Colorado, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |