Cessna 180 accident near Denver, Colorado, April 2, 2021
On April 2, 2021 at about 6:35 pm local time, a 1978 Cessna 180, registered N4802, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Denver, Colorado (Platte Valley Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s loss of situational awareness, and his unintended landing on a soft unimproved dirt road, which resulted in a loss of directional control into soft ground and the airplane to subsequently nose over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 2, 2021 · about 6:35 pm local time · cases in 2021
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Platte Valley Airpark · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 180 K, built 1978 · all 180s on the register
- Registration
- N4802 · registry record · serial 18053017
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he saw, what appeared to be his intended landing runway and set up for landing. During the landing touchdown, the pilot noticed that the airplane was difficult to control due to the soft soil. As the airplane continued the rollout, it drifted about 20 ft off the pilot’s intended direction into softer soil. Just before the airplane came to a stop, the right tire sunk into the soft ground and the airplane nosed over coming to rest inverted. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right-wing strut and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operations. After the accident, the pilot reported that he had not landed on his intended runway but on an unimproved dirt road about 0.3 miles from the runway that ran parallel to the runway. The pilot reported that he had spent too much time looking for traffic in the landing pattern and lost situational awareness of his position relative to the runway.
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
- Wrong surface or wrong airport during landing defining event
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll)
- Nose over/nose down during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Perception/orientation/illusion › Situational awareness › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surface › Soft surface › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 580 hours in all; 491 in this make and model; 5 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 515 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 6, 2021
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 15,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 2021
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cont Motor O-520 SERIES (piston); 151 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FNL Fort Collins CO at 5:47 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 9°F (-13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.07 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 am from KDEN, 17 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KDEN 021753Z VRB06KT 10SM FEW100 SCT140 BKN200 22/M13 A3007 RMK AO2 SLP126 T02171133 10217 20067 50002
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
The NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on July 12, 2021. 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 | NTSB Form 6120 Pilot Operator Report CEN21LA182 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Photo Array CEN21LA182 | PDF, 3 pages · our copy | 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
- N4802 on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna 180 Skywagon 2,605 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,684 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Cont Motor O-520 SERIES 5 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Platte Valley Airpark · nearest airport
- Northern Colorado Regional · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Colorado 2,860 since 1982 · 384 in the last ten years
- Colorado 7,455 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN21LA182.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.