Cessna 172P N911JR

Summary

On 9 August 2004 at about 23:15 local time, a Cessna 172P registered N911JR, operated by Pittsburgh Flight Training Center, was involved in an accident near Monarch Crest, 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

9 August 2004 at 23:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Monarch Crest, Colorado, United States

Coordinates

38.4989, -106.3392

Aircraft

Cessna 172P

Registration

N911JR

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Pittsburgh Flight Training Center

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Montrose → McCook

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN04FA119

2 people died.

the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed which resulted in a stall, and his decision to conduct flight beyond the performance capability of the aircraft. A contributing factor was the high density altitude, and an inadvertent stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The two pilots we en route home after a trip to the west coast. Two witnesses, hiking near the Continental Divide, heard an airplane approaching. They saw the airplane coming towards them "at eye level." It seemed to be stationary, then it banked hard to the right and went straight down. The accident took place at an elevation of 11,418 feet msl. The elevation of that portion of the Continental Divide is 11,530 feet msl. Later engine disassembly and examination disclosed no anomalies. Weather observed at a remote AWOS facility, located approximately 1 mile east of the accident site, was used to compute an estimated density altitude of 14,300 feet msl. According to the 1984 Cessna 172P Skyhawk "Information Manual," the airplane's service ceiling is 13,000 feet.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.