What happened
On March 30, 2013, a Piper PA-28-140, registration N55093, crashed near Castle Rock, Colorado, resulting in 1 fatal injury.
The flight was a personal cross-country trip that began at 1715 from Sandia Airpark Estes East Airport (1N1) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with a planned destination of Centennial Airport (APA) in Denver. The pilot was the sole occupant of the aircraft. At the time of the accident, the area was under dusk visual meteorological conditions.
Radar data from the FAA indicated that the aircraft was on course for its destination but made several turns off its track approximately 18 miles southwest of APA before resuming its course. The aircraft was flying between two areas of convective storm activity. Radar contact was lost about 16 miles from the destination at an altitude of approximately 8,000 feet MSL (about 1,500 feet AGL). No distress calls were received from the pilot.
Local residents reported observing strong surface wind gusts and a drop in temperature around the time of the accident. A witness also reported hearing the sound of an engine revving, though the aircraft was not seen. The wreckage was discovered the following morning in a ranch pasture.
The investigation
Examination of the wreckage showed the forward fuselage sustained extensive damage consistent with a nose-low, near-vertical impact. The engine, a Lycoming O-320-E3D, was examined, and the propeller blades showed evidence of being powered at the time of impact. Investigators found no evidence of an engine malfunction that would have contributed to the accident.
Flight control cables for the ailerons, stabilator, and rudder remained attached to their respective assemblies, though some components were broken due to impact forces. The fuel selector valve was found in the left fuel tank position.
An autopsy determined the cause of death was blunt force injuries. Toxicology results were negative for drugs and alcohol.