Piper PA-18-150 accident near Peyton, Colorado, August 31, 1985
On August 31, 1985 at about 9:25 pm local time, a Piper PA-18-150, registered N14331, was destroyed in an accident near Peyton, Colorado (Bijou Springs Ranch airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 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
- August 31, 1985 · about 9:25 pm local time
- Place
- Peyton, Colorado · Bijou Springs Ranch · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-18-150 · all PA-18-150s on the register
- Registration
- N14331 · no longer on the register · serial 18-7409089
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE TWO EXPERIENCED PILOTS TOOK OFF FROM HIGH ALT AIRSTRIP UNDER HIGH DENSITY ALT CONDITIONS. WITNESSES SAID ACFT ENTERED A 60-DEGREE LEFT BANKING TURN. WHEN ACFT HAD COMPLETED 120-DEGREES OF TURN, THE NOSE DROPPED. WITNESSES SAID THE ACFT SIDE-SLIPPED TO THE LEFT AND LOST CONSIDERABLE ALTITUDE. THE ACFT SEEMED TO RECOVER BUT THEN SIDE-SLIPPED TO THE RIGHT. THE ACFT STRUCK THE GROUND, SLID TO THE RIGHT, AND BURST INTO FLAMES.
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, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 7,659 hours in all; 71 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 7,301 as pilot in command; 2,294 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 376 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 25, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 1,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 21, 3,640 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 100 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from COS, 23 miles away
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.