What happened
On November 11, 2008, at approximately 1530 Mountain Standard Time, a Cessna 182M, registration N71276, crashed in the Holy Cross Wilderness near Basalt, Colorado. The aircraft was being operated by a private pilot on a planned 260-nautical mile cross-country flight from Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (BJC) in Denver to Carbon County Regional Airport (PUC) in Price, Utah. No flight plan had been filed for the flight.
Radar tracking indicated the aircraft was traveling westbound at 14,800 feet before performing a rapid descent and disappearing from radar at 1530. There were no distress calls or communications from the pilot prior to the disappearance. The aircraft was located the following day in rugged terrain, though the wreckage was not recovered until July 2009 due to remote location and heavy winter snow.
Prior to departure, the pilot received a weather briefing from the Denver Automated Flight Service Station (AFSS) that included advisories for mountain obscuration and icing, specifically recommending against Visual Flight Rules (VFR) flight. A second briefing received later that day also included advisories for mountain obscuration.
At the time of the accident, weather stations in the vicinity reported varying conditions. Near the accident site, visibility was reported as low as a quarter-mile in light snow with an overcast ceiling of 200 feet. The pilot, who did not hold an instrument rating, was the sole occupant and sustained fatal injuries.
The investigation
NTSB investigators examined the wreckage in November 2009. The aircraft showed evidence of a high-speed, steep-angle impact with the terrain. The cabin area and engine/propeller assembly were extensively crushed, and the wings exhibited aft accordion-style crushing.
Mechanical examination of the Cessna 182M revealed:
- Flight control components showed breaks and fractures consistent with structural overload.
- The engine sustained significant damage, including a broken crankshaft and a separated left front cylinder.
- The propeller blades were deeply gouged and bent aft.
- No evidence of in-flight fire or pre-impact mechanical anomalies was found.
An autopsy determined the cause of death was blunt force injuries. Toxicology results indicated the presence of ethanol and diphenhydramine in the pilot's system.