Piper PA-32RT-300 accident near Broomfield, Colorado, April 7, 2005
On April 7, 2005 at about 6:19 pm local time, a Piper PA-32RT-300, registered N3015L, was destroyed in an accident near Broomfield, Colorado (Jeffco airport). 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 failure to maintain aircraft control during landing. Contributing factor's included the quartering tailwind, and the pilot's inadequate in-flight decision making.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 7, 2005 · about 6:19 pm local time
- Place
- Broomfield, Colorado · Jeffco · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32RT-300 · all PA-32RT-300s on the register
- Registration
- N3015L · no longer on the register · serial 32R-7985067
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
There were several witnesses who observed the airplane. One witness stated that the airplane appeared to overshoot the runway and turn back. Another witness reported the wings rocking back and forth. The controller cleared the accident airplane to "make short approach runway two niner right cleared to land." The pilot of the accident airplane acknowledged the clearance to land. A review of an airport surveillance video depicted that the airplane impacted the runway in a left wing low attitude. The left main landing gear collapsed followed by the nose and right main landing gear. The airplane departed the right side of the runway, slid sideways on its belly, impacted a runway/taxiway sign, and a postimpact fire ensued, destroying the airplane. At 1225, the automated surface observation system (ASOS), reported, wind, 140 degrees at 7 knots. According to the Automated Terminal Information Service (ATIS), Quebec was the current information prior to the accident. The recording reflected the wind as 160 degrees at 7 knots. A Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) system reflected the winds from 110 degrees at 6 knots, with occasional small gusts to 11 knots. During the scan at the time of the accident, a small gust of 11 knots appears over the landing threshold. The winds in the touchdown zone at the time of the accident appear to be around 6 knots. The winds recorded from 1.5 hours prior to the accident varied from 120 degrees to 140 degrees from 3 to 5 knots with gusts to 11 knots. According to the Lidar data and the METAR, the wind varied from a direct tail wind at 6 to 11 knots to a 60 degree quartering tailwind from the left at 7 knots; the tailwind component was calculated to be approximately 4 knots and the crosswind was calculated to be approximately 6 knots.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 25,900 hours in all; 180 in this make and model; 11 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: April 1, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,369 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 10, 2004; 72 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-K1G5D (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: BJC Broomfield CO at 3:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29R, 9,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 6:25 pm from BJC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N3015L the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.