Swearingen SA226TC incident near Denver, Colorado, April 5, 2006
On April 5, 2006 at about 12:23 pm local time, a Swearingen SA226TC, registered N770S, was involved in an incident near Denver, Colorado (Denver Intl airport). It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 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 failure of the elevator down cable due to an improperly routed cable by unknown maintenance personnel. A contributing factor was the improper inspection of the elevator cable by the operator's maintenance personnel.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 5, 2006 · about 12:23 pm local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Denver Intl · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SA226TC · all SA226TCs on the register
- Registration
- N770S · no longer on the register · serial TC-248
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Prior to departure, the pilot completed the pre-takeoff checklist, which included checking the flight controls. While at 80-85 knots during the takeoff roll, the pilot "noticed pitch seemed very light. At rotation speed, [pilot] pulled back on yoke and aircraft left ground. At this point, yoke came back all the way back and aircraft began to quickly pitch upward." The pilot reported that moving the yoke forward had no effect and it felt disconnected from the elevators. The pilot quickly began to trim nose down and reduced power to stop excessive nose up pitch. After gaining marginal control of the aircraft, the pilot advised air traffic control he had a "flight control problem" and requested a return for landing. During the downwind leg to runway 17L, the pilot "experimented with various configurations...to determine the method of approach and landing." The pilot executed a gradual descent to the runway and landed uneventfully. Examination of the airplane by company maintenance personnel revealed that "the elevator down cable was improperly routed at the pulley in the vertical stab, just below the elevator bell crank. This caused the cable to wear against a guide until the cable failed." The aircraft underwent an inspection 10 days prior to the incident. According to the inspection checklist, the elevator cables and related components were inspected with no anomalies noted. Upon discovery of the improper routed cable, the operator checked the other 18 aircraft in their fleet. No discrepanices were found.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 201 in the last 90 days; 82 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: November 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 32,479 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, March 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 10,062 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Garrett TPE-331-10UA (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Denver CO at 12:20 pm
- Destination: DDC Dodge City KS
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 210° at 12 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.67 inHg
- Observation at 12:17 pm from DEN
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.
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 DEN06IA056.