Accident Overview
On September 5, 2025, about 0623 mountain daylight time, a Beech P35 airplane, registration N463T, was destroyed when it impacted a paved driveway at an industrial facility near Englewood, Colorado. The accident occurred during a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. Both the pilot receiving instruction and the flight instructor were fatally injured.
Flight History
The airplane departed from runway 35R at Centennial Airport (KAPA), Englewood, Colorado, about 0543. ADS-B data indicated that the airplane remained in the traffic pattern and performed several landings. Archived tower audio recordings captured a pilot stating “on the roll” after a stop-and-go landing to runway 17L, which was the last recorded radio transmission. The tower controller later cleared the airplane “the option” but received no response. The controller requested the pilots “ident,” and the controller replied “ident observed.” No distress calls were recorded.
ADS-B data showed that at 0622:15, the airplane stopped a climb and began to descend. At 0622:43, the data recorded the airplane’s ident. The descent continued until the last recorded point at 0623:05, when the airplane was about 5,900 ft mean sea level with a groundspeed of 77 knots.
Witness Reports
A firefighter located about 1.5 miles south of the accident site heard the airplane fly overhead and heard the engine stop completely. A woman walking in a neighborhood south of the airport observed the airplane flying lower than usual on a different flight path. She heard the engine go silent and saw the airplane in a “hard” left bank toward the airport while descending. She thought the airplane was conducting training.
Wreckage Examination
Cameras from nearby businesses captured low-resolution video showing the airplane descending in a left bank, then banking right just before ground impact. The airplane struck a paved driveway, leaving scrapes on the asphalt aligned on a 280° heading toward the accident site. The main wreckage included most of the airplane. Portions of the right wing scattered south of the debris path. The left wing was fractured near the root and folded aft. The remainder of the airplane stayed in its expected orientation. Impact signatures indicated the airplane collided with several concrete pole barriers in front of a generator unit before coming to rest on a 060° heading.
Flight control continuity was established from the cockpit to the aileron bellcranks and ruddervators. The dual control wheel chain was observed with the aileron yoke chain around its sprocket. The landing gear and flaps were found retracted. The propeller remained attached to the engine, which was displaced aft into the cockpit area. The airplane was retained for further examination.