Amateur-built RAF SE5A Replica accident near Watkins, Colorado, November 21, 2012
On November 21, 2012 at about 8:58 pm local time, a amateur-built RAF SE5A Replica, registered N17SE, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR pattern downwind) near Watkins, Colorado (Front Range Airport, Colorado). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s loss of airplane control and inadvertent stall while attempting to return for landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 21, 2012 · about 8:58 pm local time
- Place
- Watkins, Colorado · Front Range Airport, Colorado · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RAF SE5A Replica
- Registration
- N17SE · registry record · serial PFA 020-13793
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot had requested to return to the airport for a full stop landing. According to a witness, the airplane appeared to be in a slow, labored climb in an abnormally high pitch attitude about 300 feet above the ground on the downwind leg in the traffic pattern. The airplane then entered a spiral descent while approaching the turn to base and impacted the ground about 0.7 miles north of the runway threshold; a postimpact fire ensued. Examination of the airplane and engine did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The slow flight and high pitch followed by a spiral descent are indicative of an aerodynamic stall.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Loss of control in flight during approach (VFR pattern downwind) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › (general) › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Temp/humidity/pressure › (general) › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: foreign licence, private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 491 hours in all; 7 in this make and model; 1 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: August 19, 2011
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 12 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 1, 2011; 4 hours since
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental Motors O-200A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: KFTG Watkins CO at 8:55 pm
- Destination: KFTG Watkins CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 8,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 14°F (-10°C)
- Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from KFTG, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.