Cirrus Design Corp SR20 accident near Maybell, Colorado, September 15, 2006
On September 15, 2006 at about 7:32 pm local time, a Cirrus Design Corp SR20, registered N787SL, was destroyed in an accident near Maybell, Colorado (Na airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper in-flight planning and decision making resulting in an inadvertent encounter with severe icing conditions during cruise flight and subsequent loss of aircraft control. Contributing factors include the pilot's failure to obtain a weather briefing, the thunderstorm, conditions conducive for structural icing, and the pilot's failure to deploy the parachute recovery system.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 15, 2006 · about 7:32 pm local time
- Place
- Maybell, Colorado · Na · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cirrus Design Corp SR20 · all SR20s on the register
- Registration
- N787SL · no longer on the register · serial 1556
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot contacted ARTCC and stated he needed a lower altitude, as he was encountering icing conditions. Several altitude changes were assigned. Ultimately the pilot was assigned a block altitude from 12,000 feet to 13,000 feet. The pilot reported that they were in serious icing conditions and the controller cleared the pilot to an altitude of 11,000 feet. Shortly thereafter, voice and radar communications with the airplane were lost. The wreckage was located scattered over a 1.5 mile area between Colorado and Wyoming. Signatures at the scene showed evidence consistent with a ground impact deployment of the parachute recovery system, resulting in fragmentation of the airplane, as it was drug by high winds. An examination of the remaining airplane systems revealed no anomalies. Thunderstorm activity existed along the route of flight along with severe icing and turbulence. The pilot had not obtained a full weather briefing prior to the flight.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 584 hours in all; 276 in this make and model
- Last flight review: July 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
Other crew
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Last flight review: May 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 503.4 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 1, 2006; 243.5 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,000 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Teledyne Continental IO-360-E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TVY Tooele UT at 5:50 pm
- Destination: LNK Lincoln NE
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 24 knots, gusting 29
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 29.64 inHg
- Observation at 6:54 pm from RKS, 50 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.