On May 26, 1993, a Mooney M20E (registration N5741Q) operated by Scamman, James P. was involved in an aviation accident near Westcliffe, CO. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: THE PILOT'S LOSS OF AIRCRAFT CONTROL AS HE ATTEMPTED TO TURN AWAY FROM A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS. FACTORS WERE THUNDERSTORMS AND ASSOCIATED TURBULENCE. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
An instrument-rated pilot flying under VFR on top encountered active thunderstorms near the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, resulting in a controlled flight into terrain.
What happened
The flight departed Durango at 2045. Prior to departure, the instrument-rated pilot obtained a weather briefing indicating that visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed at both Durango and Denver, with similar conditions forecast along the intended route of flight. The pilot filed an IFR flight plan and received clearance to maintain VFR on top.
The aircraft proceeded without known difficulty until it reached the Sangre de CRISTO Mountains near Westcliffe, Colorado. Radar data indicated that the airplane entered a left turn and began descending from 16,400 feet. The wreckage was located the following morning at an elevation of 11,900 feet.
While visual meteorological conditions were reported by a sheriff's deputy to be prevailing at Westcliffe, active thunderstorms were present along the mountain range around the time of the accident.