History of Flight
On December 22, 2008, at 1220 mountain standard time, a Piper PA-46-310P, N46SB, operated by the pilot, was destroyed when it collided with terrain following a loss of control during an ILS Runway 10 approach to Yampa Valley Airport (HDN), Hayden, Colorado. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91 with an IFR flight plan. The private pilot-in-command and commercial pilot on board were fatally injured. The cross-country flight originated from Hutchinson Municipal Airport (HUT), Kansas, at 1010 central standard time.
The two pilots, husband and wife, had flown to HUT on December 7 for an annual inspection. They returned to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and later returned to HUT to pick up the airplane.
The pilot received weather briefings on December 21 and the morning of December 22. The briefing indicated a stationary front along the Front Range and a large low pressure area approaching Colorado, bringing mist, increasing snow, fog, and mountain obscuration. AIRMETs were in effect for marginal VFR and IFR conditions, moderate turbulence below 18,000 feet, and moderate icing below 20,000 feet.
ATC records indicate an IFR release at 1010 cst. Radio contact was established at 1012 cst. En route altitudes varied from 12,000 feet to FL200. At 1052, the pilot reported accumulating light rime ice at 12,000 feet, then corrected to trace icing. At 1135 mst, Denver ARTCC cleared the flight direct to the Hayden VOR-DME.
At 1149, the flight was cleared direct to INEDE, the initial approach fix for the ILS. The pilot declined a visual approach request, citing flying "in and out" of clouds. Approach clearance was issued at 1211.
Radar showed the airplane proceeding outbound for the procedure turn. At 1216, the pilot reported trouble with gear extension. At 1218, the pilot reported gear down with three green lights. This was the last recorded transmission. Radar plots showed the airplane crossed the localizer at nearly a 90-degree angle, then turned left until radar coverage was lost at 1220:11.
At 1229, an ELT signal was reported. Search and rescue located the wreckage at approximately 1645, 2.5 miles northwest of Elk Head Reservoir near County Road 178.
Crew Information
The private pilot-in-command, age 67, held a private pilot certificate with single-engine land and instrument ratings and a third-class medical certificate dated November 8, 2008, requiring corrective lenses. He reported 1,967 total flight hours, with 823 in the PA-46-310P. His most recent flight review was on November 8, 2008.
The second pilot, age 67, held a commercial pilot certificate with single-engine land and instrument ratings and a third-class medical certificate dated October 1, 2007, requiring corrective lenses. She reported 2,067 total flight hours, with 798 in the PA-46-310P.
Aircraft Information
N46SB (s.n. 4608039), a 1986 Piper PA-46-310P, was equipped with a Continental TSIO-550-C1B engine (310 hp) and an MT Propellers 4-blade composite propeller. The airplane had an annual inspection on December 22, 2008, with 3,301.7 airframe hours and 1,253 engine hours. Adjustments were made to the nose landing gear, and a ground retraction test was performed.
Meteorological Information
Weather at HDN was recorded by a non-federal AWOS-3. At 1215, wind was 350 degrees at 4 knots, visibility 2.5 statute miles, sky few clouds at 1,500 feet, scattered at 3,200 feet, broken at 4,400 feet. Temperature was -3°C, dew point -6°C, altimeter 29.48 inHg.
At Craig, Colorado (CAG), at 1253, wind calm, visibility 10 miles, few clouds 2,600 feet, broken 4,100 feet, overcast 5,500 feet. At 1353, wind 250 at 6 knots, visibility 6 miles, light snow, scattered 3,600 feet, overcast 4,700 feet.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The accident site was at 40°34.179'N, 107°24.934'W, elevation 6,563 feet, 10.5 miles on a 289-degree bearing from HDN. The airplane impacted terrain in a wings-level, 60-degree nose-down attitude on a heading of 235 degrees. The cockpit crushed aft and upward, fuselage buckled forward of the cabin door. Both wings had full-span compression damage. Flaps were retracted, landing gear extended. Control continuity was established, and no airframe anomalies were noted. The vertical stabilizer/rudder separated; the engine was buried up to the aft cowling. Examination of the engine revealed no discrepancies.
Medical and Pathological Information
Autopsies attributed both deaths to massive bodily injury from blunt force trauma. Toxicology screens detected no carbon monoxide, cyanide, or ethanol. Chlorpheniramine (0.044 ug/ml) was found in the second pilot; no other drugs were detected.
Tests and Research
Radar data from Denver ARTCC showed the airplane flew over HDN at 11,400 feet, then descended for the procedure turn. During the approach, the airplane overshot the localizer, then entered a left turn. Six radar plots captured the final turn, showing altitude fluctuations from 9,400 to 10,200 feet, groundspeed from 85 to 152 knots, then dropping to 20 knots at 8,700 feet, and finally 38 knots at 8,400 feet. The landing gear emergency extension procedure, as per the pilot's operating handbook, required slowing below 90 knots, pulling the 25-amp circuit breaker, placing the gear selector down, and pulling the emergency gear extend control.