Boeing 737-291 incident near Steamboat Sprin, Colorado, January 23, 1985
On January 23, 1985 at about 9:25 pm local time, a Boeing 737-291, registered N7343F, was involved in an incident near Steamboat Sprin, Colorado. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 107 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
- January 23, 1985 · about 9:25 pm local time
- Place
- Steamboat Sprin, Colorado · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 107 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Boeing 737-291 · all 737-291s on the register
- Registration
- N7343F · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
SHORTLY AFTER DEPARTURE FROM OAKLAND, CAPT INDICATED HE DID NOT FEEL WELL. DURING THE DESCENT INTO DEN, THE CAPT PASSED OUT FOR SEVERAL MINUTES. HE WAS REVIVED WITH OXYGEN ADMINISTERED BY A FLT ATTENDANT. F/O MADE LANDING AND CAPT TAXIED TO THE GATE. CAPT WAS EXAMINED AND A REASON FOR UNCONSCIOUSNESS COULD NOT BE DETERMINED.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 21,000 hours in all; 5,043 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 100,000 lb
- Seats: 130
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W JT8D-9 (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OAK Oakland CA at 7:19 pm
- Destination: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 5 | |||
| Passengers | 102 |
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.