Amateur-built SKYBOLT accident near Glenwood Spring, Colorado, July 23, 1982
On July 23, 1982 at about 9:14 pm local time, a amateur-built SKYBOLT, registered N58D, was destroyed in an accident near Glenwood Spring, Colorado. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 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
- July 23, 1982 · about 9:14 pm local time
- Place
- Glenwood Spring, Colorado
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SKYBOLT
- Registration
- N58D · registry record
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED INTO TREES IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN ABOUT 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE GLENWOOD SPRINGS COUNTY AIRPORT. THIS OCCURRED WHILE THE PILOT WAS FLYING LOW OVER THE MOUNTAINOUS AREA AND WAS UNABLE TO OUTCLIMB THE RISING TERRAIN. THE DENSITY ALTITUDE WAS ABOUT 11300 FT.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,722 hours in all; 19 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 1,722 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 125 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 900 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Orin Aviation, LTD.
The flight
- Departed from: Glenwood Spring CO at 3:40 pm
- Destination: Rifle CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 185°F (85°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.