Piper PA-28-235C accident near Pitkin, Colorado, July 27, 1983
On July 27, 1983 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-235C, registered N9378W, was destroyed in an accident near Pitkin, Colorado. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. 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 27, 1983 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Pitkin, Colorado · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28-235C · all PA-28-235Cs on the register
- Registration
- N9378W · no longer on the register · serial 28-11070
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS ON A X-COUNTRY FLT FROM CAMARILLO, CA TO OSHKOSH, WI. THE PLT LANDED AT ABOUT NOON AT MONTROSE, CO, WHERE THE ACFT WAS REFUELED & THE OCCUPANTS WENT TO A RESTAURANT TO EAT. AFTER DEPARTING MONTROSE, THE ACFT WAS SEEN FLYING LOW OVER RISING, MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN, HEADING TOWARD WILLIAMS PASS. SUBSEQUENTLY, IT COLLIDED WITH TREES & CRASHED ON THE SOUTH SLOPE OF A VALLEY NEAR WILLIAMS PASS, APRX 92 MI ENE OF MONTROSE. THE WITNESSES DID NOT SEE OR HEAR THE ACFT CRASH. AT THE TIME, THEY THOUGHT THE PLT MAY HAVE TURNED OR SOMEHOW CONTINUED OVER THE PASS. LATER, THE ACFT WAS FOUND AFTER A WITNESS LEARNED THERE WAS A MISSING PLANE & NOTIFIED AUTHORITIES. NO EVIDENCE OF A PREIMPACT, MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE WAS FOUND. THE DENSITY ALTITUDE WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 14,400 FT. THE PLT'S LAST BIENNIAL FLT REVIEW WAS ON 7/24/81.
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: single-engine land
- Flight time: 309 hours in all; 299 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 256 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,517 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 21, 1983; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-A4B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MTJ Montrose CO at 7:30 pm
- Destination: Oshkosh WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; scat at 1,000 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:35 pm from GUC, 35 miles away
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.