Rockwell 680FL accident near Basalt, Colorado, March 13, 1987
On March 13, 1987 at about 1:39 am local time, a Rockwell 680FL, registered N4581E, was destroyed in an accident near Basalt, Colorado. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- March 13, 1987 · about 1:39 am local time
- Place
- Basalt, Colorado · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell 680FL
- Registration
- N4581E · no longer on the register · serial 1672134
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
N4581E WAS OPERATING UNDER 14 CFR 135 CARRYING CARGO. THE PLT STATED THAT HE DEPARTED VFR AND HAD '7 TO 10' MI VIS AT THE ACDT SITE. WITNESSES AT AND NEAR THE ACDT SITE STATED THAT HEAVY SNOW WAS FALLING AT THE TIME OF THE ACDT AND THE VIS WAS 1 MI OR LESS. THE ACFT STRUCK A 2 STORY DUPLEX IN A LT WING LOW ATTITUDE, 18 FT AGL. POST CRASH EXAM OF THE ACFT AND ENGINES REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF MECH MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE. THE PLT HAD BEEN GROUNDED FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS PRIOR TO THE ACDT DUE TO MED PROBLEMS. THERE WAS NO RECORD THAT INDICATED THE PLT HAD BEEN ROUTE CHECKED FOR OPS AT ASPEN.
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; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,424 hours in all; 104 in this make and model; 4,091 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,267 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, February 20, 1987; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IGSO-540-B1A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Energy Air Charters Of Mt
The flight
- Departed from: ASE Aspen CO at 1:36 am
- Destination: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 320° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:27 am from ASE, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.