High Country Descent

High Country Descent

The silence of the Colorado high country was broken only by the wind whistling through the sparse vegetation. Then, a sound... alien to this remote, rugged landscape. The strained whine of a light aircraft engine, fighting against unseen forces. Witnesses on the ground, few and far between, might have glanced up, perhaps noticing a small plane behaving erratically... pitching, rolling, losing altitude rapidly. A desperate struggle unfolding thousands of feet above the unforgiving terrain. Then, the sound changed... a sudden, violent impact, followed by the sickening crunch of tearing metal and splintering composite. Silence returned, heavy and absolute, save for the crackle of a nascent fire. High in the mountains, near Alma, Colorado, a journey had ended, not at its intended destination, but in catastrophe.

It was April 2nd, 2018. A Cessna 210A, registration N68640, took off from Erie Municipal Airport, Colorado, bound for Richmond, Utah. On board was a single pilot, a 67-year-old man undertaking a personal cross-country flight under Part 91 regulations. The purpose: to relocate the aircraft for maintenance. But this was no ordinary flight, and this was no ordinary pilot.

The aircraft itself, a 1960 model, had a history. According to records, it hadn't had a current annual inspection since early 2014. More concerning, it appeared the aircraft had been largely inactive for the four years leading up to this flight. The pilot, too, had a complex history. His private pilot certificate had been suspended indefinitely in 2014 for a series of regulatory violations, including operating without a valid medical certificate, deviating from air traffic control instructions, and airspace infringements. He had not surrendered his certificate or responded to the FAA's investigation. His last documented medical exam was in 2006. Compounding this, the pilot had significant medical issues, including insulin-treated diabetes and respiratory problems requiring supplemental oxygen.

The night before the fatal flight offered a glimpse into the pilot's recent interactions with the aircraft. A witness helped him push the Cessna back onto the taxiway after a brake locked up. They discussed how neither the pilot nor the plane had flown in over a year. Later that evening, a tow truck was called to the airport. The pilot admitted he had "hit the wrong lever," inadvertently retracting the nose landing gear while on the ground, causing it to collapse. He told the tow truck driver he'd have a mechanic look at it the next morning. Despite these issues, the pilot's brother dropped him off at the airport the next morning, expecting to meet him in Utah later that day. A mechanic at the destination airport also spoke briefly with the pilot, understanding he was departing around 8:15 AM. The witness from the night before observed a lengthy engine run-up, lasting about 15 minutes, before the Cessna finally departed.

When the pilot failed to arrive in Utah, the alarm was raised. An alert notice was issued. Initial search efforts, utilizing limited radar and cell phone data, placed the aircraft's last known activity around 9:32 AM that morning. But the exact route and altitude remained unknown. The search was suspended due to severe weather in the mountainous search area. The mystery deepened... for over three months.

Then, in July, hikers made a grim discovery. High in the rugged terrain near Alma, Colorado, at an elevation of 12,700 feet, they found the wreckage.

Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board arrived at the remote site. The scene told a story of violent impact. The main wreckage – the engine, wings, fuselage, empennage – lay on its left side, oriented west. About 33 feet to the west was the initial impact point, marked by fragmented plexiglass and ground scars. Debris was scattered eastward, including portions of the ailerons, engine components, and a propeller blade. The right main landing gear had separated, found 28 feet south of the main wreckage. The left main and nose gear remained attached, their position consistent with being extended at impact... supporting the family member's account that the pilot intended to fly with the gear down due to the previous night's incident.

The engine had separated, coming to rest inverted on top of the right wing. It was severely damaged. Both propeller blades had detached. One was in the debris field, the other found 300 feet away. Both blades bore the unmistakable marks of high rotational energy at impact: deep leading-edge gouges, twisting, chordwise scrapes, and torn tips. This indicated the engine was producing power at the moment of collision with the earth.

The wings showed severe accordion crushing along their leading edges, consistent with a high-speed impact. The flaps on both wings were retracted. The instrument panel was fragmented, offering no usable readings. A Garmin GPS unit was found but yielded no track data.

The wreckage pattern, the ground scars, and the condition of the aircraft components painted a clear picture: a right-wing low impact, followed by a violent cartwheel.

But what led to this catastrophic loss of control at such a high altitude in mountainous terrain? The investigation turned to the environment the pilot encountered. Meteorological data for April 2nd, 2018, was crucial. Surface analysis charts, wind profiles, and satellite images all depicted conditions ripe for significant atmospheric disturbance over the Colorado mountains. Specifically, conditions were highly conducive to moderate-to-severe turbulence and mountain wave activity. Satellite imagery showed well-defined lenticular clouds near the accident site, a classic visual indicator of mountain waves. Water vapor imagery showed patterns consistent with rising and descending air associated with this phenomenon.

Official weather observations from nearby stations confirmed strong winds and gusts. Lake County Airport, just 7 miles west of the crash site at over 9,900 feet, reported winds gusting to 25 knots. Copper Mountain, 12 miles north at over 12,000 feet, reported winds gusting to 40 knots. Pilot reports from other aircraft in the area that morning painted an even starker picture: numerous reports of moderate turbulence between 10,000 and 16,000 feet, and critically, multiple reports of *severe* turbulence, one at 14,000 feet. Several pilots reported encountering moderate mountain wave, with one explicitly stating they were unable to hold altitude. An Airmen's Meteorological Information (AIRMET) for moderate turbulence below 18,000 feet was valid for the route.

A search of official weather briefing sources revealed the accident pilot had not obtained a weather briefing for his intended route of flight.

The autopsy, performed months later, confirmed the pilot died from massive blunt force trauma. Toxicological testing, complicated by the prolonged exposure of the remains, detected ethanol and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active compound in marijuana. While post-mortem microbial activity could produce ethanol, the presence of THC in muscle tissue indicated the pilot had ingested marijuana at some point before the accident. However, determining impairment at the time of the flight from samples exposed for months was not possible.

Considering the pilot's history – operating without a valid certificate or current medical, his previous regulatory violations, the lack of recent flight experience (his brother estimated he hadn't flown in at least two years), the aircraft's lack of a current annual inspection, and the incident with the landing gear the night before – a pattern emerged. The NTSB concluded that the pilot's decisions on the day of the accident were consistent with a demonstrated disregard for regulations and safe operating practices.

While the extent to which the aircraft's maintenance status or the pilot's lack of recent experience contributed to his ability to handle a severe mountain wave encounter could not be definitively determined, the evidence pointed strongly to the environment as the immediate trigger for the loss of control.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this accident was the noncertificated pilot's poor decision to depart on a flight over mountainous terrain in an improperly maintained airplane, and the subsequent encounter with mountain wave turbulence, which resulted in the loss of airplane control and impact with terrain.

Contributing to this tragic outcome were the pilot's inadequate preflight weather planning, his lack of recent experience, and the aircraft's lack of scheduled maintenance. It was a confluence of poor judgment, disregard for rules, and unforgiving environmental conditions... culminating in a catastrophic loss of control high above the Colorado peaks. A stark and somber reminder of the critical importance of proper pilot certification, thorough weather planning, aircraft airworthiness, and the inherent dangers of mountain flying in turbulent conditions.