Beech V35B accident near Erie, Colorado, May 13, 2000
On May 13, 2000 at about 8:14 pm local time, a Beech V35B, registered N6643Q, was substantially damaged in an accident near Erie, Colorado (Erie-Tri-County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Inadvertent cut off of the mixture by the pilot. Factors were: The passenger door opening, the pilot's inexperience in make and model, and rough, uneven terrain in the landing area.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 13, 2000 · about 8:14 pm local time
- Place
- Erie, Colorado · Erie-Tri-County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech V35B · all V35Bs on the register
- Registration
- N6643Q · registry record · serial D-10265
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During climb to cruise on a cross-country flight the passenger door came open and the pilot made a precautionary approach for landing at an airport along his route. After initiating descent for landing, the pilot discovered that the engine had lost all power. The landing was made short of the intended runway with the landing gear retracted. Following the landing, and evacuation of the aircraft by the pilot and his passengers, witnesses found the cockpit fully configured for flight with the throttle and propeller controls full forward and the magnetos and master switch on. However, the mixture was in the cutoff position. Examination and testing of the passenger door revealed no abnormalities. The flight was the pilot's first flight after being signed off as competent to perform as pilot in command in this make and model aircraft. He had accumulated approximately 4 hours flight experience in the aircraft with a total flight time of 207 hours all in single engine land airplanes.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 207 hours in all; 4 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 160 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,840 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 13, 2000; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO520BB55B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BJC Broomfield CO at 7:55 pm
- Destination: HSI Hastings NE
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 33, 4,700 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 80 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 12°F (-11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:45 pm from BJC, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number DEN00LA088.