Accident Details
The pilot of aircraft N3944V departed Alaska several days before the accident and was en route to Canton, Ohio. On the day of the crash, he took off from Moab, Utah, and was flying along Interstate 70, a major highway. Witnesses near the Eisenhower Tunnel at the Continental Divide in Colorado (elevation 11,145 feet) reported seeing an aircraft matching the description of N3944V.
Sequence of Events
The aircraft was observed eastbound at low altitude as it passed the west entrance of the tunnel. It then began climbing. Before reaching the Continental Divide, the aircraft turned abruptly to the north and was last seen flying up a valley. Subsequently, it crashed on a snow field in a bowl area surrounded on the west, north, and east by peaks and ridges. Terrain around the accident site rose upward to 13,000 feet.
Wreckage and Impact Evidence
There was evidence that the aircraft impacted in a steep nose-down attitude. During impact, the leading edges of the wings were crushed, and the empennage had broken about 4 feet aft of the wings and had folded aft and to the right.
Pilot Information
There was evidence that the pilot survived the impact but died from complications of hypothermia. His student pilot medical certificate had been issued on April 24, 1986.