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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 21, 2012 · about 8:58 pm local time · cases in 2012
- Place
- Watkins, Colorado · Front Range Airport, Colorado · cases near this airport · 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
6 documents, released by the NTSB on May 8, 2013. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toxicological Report | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 2 | Statement of Party Representatives to NTSB Investigation | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Witness Statement - Burt Eaton | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Witness Statement - M Buehner-coldrey | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Witness Statement - Forrest Mars | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 6 | Review of Radio Communications | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N17SE on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Continental Motors O-200A 297 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Accidents and incidents in Colorado 2,860 since 1982 · 383 in the last ten years
- Colorado 7,483 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN13FA066.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.