Piper PA-28-180 N5172L

Summary

On 31 August 1999 at about 18:15 local time, a Piper PA-28-180 registered N5172L was involved in an accident near Peyton, Colorado, United States. 4 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured, 2 had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

31 August 1999 at 18:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Peyton, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Meadow Lake Airport (00V)

Coordinates

39.0300, -104.4793

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-180

Registration

N5172L

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Laramie

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN99LA156

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot's loss of control resulting in inadvertent stall/mush during initial climb following takeoff. Factors were the unfavorable, sudden windshift conditions, the high density altitude, and the manufacturer's failure to provide adequate density altitude performance information in the Airplane Flight Manual.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Prior to takeoff, the pilot observed the winds to be out of the northwest at 10 knots, and he selected runway 33 for departure. He performed a density altitude calculation and it was determined to be 9,747 feet msl. Takeoff was normal, and the pilot climbed out at 80 mph. During initial climb, the airspeed dropped to 60 mph. He lowered the nose to gain airspeed and flew the aircraft under a set of power lines. Shortly thereafter, the aircraft impacted slightly inclining terrain. The four occupants exited the aircraft, and the airplane was subsequently consumed by fire. At 1154, the closest reporting weather facility located 10.4 nm to the southwest was reporting the winds to be from 110 degrees at 7 knots. At 1254, the winds were variable at 4 knots. Several pilots in the area reported encountering sudden windshift conditions near the time of the accident. According to calculated weight and balance data, the aircraft was slightly under maximum gross weight and within center of gravity limits at takeoff. There is no performance data in the Airplane Flight Manual for takeoffs above 7,000 feet density altitude.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.