Fairchild/Swearingen SA226TC incident near Denver, Colorado, September 13, 1982
On September 13, 1982 at about 11:20 am local time, a Fairchild/Swearingen SA226TC, registered N5471M, suffered minor damage in an incident near Denver, Colorado (Stapleton International airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 5 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 incident. 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
- September 13, 1982 · about 11:20 am local time
- Place
- Denver, Colorado · Stapleton International · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 5 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Fairchild/Swearingen SA226TC
- Registration
- N5471M · no longer on the register · serial TC265
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING TAKEOFF ON A MAINTENANCE FERRY FLIGHT, WITH A MECHANIC FLYING FROM THE RIGHT SEAT, THE AIRCRAFT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE ABOVE V1 AND WOULD NOT ROTATE EVEN WITH FULL AFT YOKE. THE CAPTAIN ABORTED THE TAKEOFF AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS STOPPED AT THE END OF THE RUNWAY WITH THE RIGHT GEAR ON THE OVERRUN AREA. AFTER THE AIRCRAFT STOPPED, CREWMEMBERS EXTINGUISHED TWO SMALL FIRES IN THE MAIN GEAR BRAKES. INVESTIGATION DID NOT REVEAL THE REASON THE AIRCRAFT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE, HOWEVER IT WAS NOTED THAT BOTH MAIN BRAKE ASSEMBLIES HAD BEEN SUBJECTED TO EXTREME HEAT AND RAPID COOLING. IN ADDITION, ALL OF THE BRAKE PUCKS WERE WORN THIN. THIS DAMAGE WAS CONSISTENT WITH TAKING OFF WITH THE PARKING BRAKE ENGAGED OR INADVERTENT APPLICATION OF THE TOE BRAKES DURING TAKEOFF ROLL.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,630 hours in all; 4,408 in this make and model; 264 in the last 90 days; 3,718 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,882 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10,748 lb
- Seats: 17
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Airesearch TPE33134W303G (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Air Midwest
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Denver CO at 5:17 am
- Destination: C Wichita KS
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 8L, 7,924 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 118°F (48°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.