Beechcraft H35 N35DE

Summary

On 26 July 1998 at about 17:00 local time, a Beechcraft H35 registered N35DE was involved in an accident near La Veta, Colorado, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

26 July 1998 at 17:00

Classification

Accident

Location

La Veta, Colorado, United States

Coordinates

37.5103, -105.0008

Aircraft

Beechcraft H35

Registration

N35DE

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Alamosa → Oshkosh

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW98FA339

2 people died.

The pilot's poor judgment by intentionally flying into instrument meteorological conditions without proper certification. Factors were his failure to obtain a weather briefing, and the existing weather conditions that included clouds, rain, and obscuration.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The non instrument rated private pilot and his passenger were en route from Buckeye, Arizona, to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, to attend the Experimental Aircraft Association's annual fly-in. The airplane landed at Alamosa, Colorado, and was refueled. According to the lineman who serviced the airplane, the passenger was apprehensive and expressed concern about the weather conditions. Other pilots attempted to fly through La Veta Pass and were forced to turn back because the pass was obscured. The lineman said that when N35DE departed, the weather was 'pretty nasty.' It had been raining 'off and on,' the sky was overcast, and the mountains to the east were obscured. The airplane was found four days later on the south face of Mount Maestas (elevation 11,569 feet mean sea level (MSL) , about the 9,000 foot level, just below La Veta Pass (summit, 9,413 feet MSL). Examination of the wreckage did not disclose any evidence of mechanical malfunction.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.