Piper PA-32RT-300T accident near Durango, Colorado, June 23, 1982
On June 23, 1982, a Piper PA-32RT-300T, registered N31912, was substantially damaged in an accident near Durango, Colorado (Durango Laplata CO. airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 23, 1982
- Place
- Durango, Colorado · Durango Laplata CO. · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-32RT-300T PA-32RT-30 · all PA-32RT-300Ts on the register
- Registration
- N31912 · no longer on the register · serial 32R7887014
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT REPORTED THAT AFTER TAKING OFF, DENSE WHITE SMOKE BEGAN TO FILL THE COCKPIT AND SEEMED TO COME FROM UNDER THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. HE STATED THAT THE INSTRUMENTS WERE IN THE NORMAL OPERATING RANGE, BUT THE SMOKE BECAME SO DENSE THAT THE VISIBILITY IN THE COCKPIT WAS REDUCED TO A FEW INCHES. THE PASSENGER IN THE RIGHT FRONT SEAT WAS ALSO A PILOT AND ASSISTED IN NAVIGATING BACK TO THE AIRPORT. THE AIRCRAFT WAS LANDED DOWNWIND ON RUNWAY 20, AND AFTER TOUCHDOWN, THE NOSE GEAR COLLAPSED. AN EXAMINATION REVEALED THAT A TURBOCHARGER EXHAUST COUPLING HAD FAILED AND ALLOWED HOT EXHAUST GASES TO EXPEL INTO THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE OIL PRESSURE HOSE LINE MELTED AND OIL WAS SPRAYED ONTO THE TURBOCHARGER AND MIXED WITH THE HOT GASES AND BURNED. THE SMOKE ENTERED THE COCKPIT THROUGH THE VENT BENEATH THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. AN EXAMINATION OF THE NOSE GEAR REVEALED THAT THE GEAR DOWN LOCK SPRINGS WERE DAMAGED BY FIRE, THUS ALLOWING THE NOSE GEAR TO COLLAPSE.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,353 hours in all; 310 in this make and model; 218 in the last 90 days; 1,141 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,245 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 49 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,600 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540-51AD (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire in flight and on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: DRO Durango CO at 6:00 pm
- Destination: COS Colorado Spring CO
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 20, 9,200 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 75 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 165°F (74°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:35 pm from DRO
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.
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.