Cessna 177RG accident near Glenwood Spring, Colorado, October 6, 1986
On October 6, 1986 at about 1:25 pm local time, a Cessna 177RG, registered N33215, was destroyed in an accident near Glenwood Spring, Colorado (Glenwood Springs airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people had minor injuries. 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
- October 6, 1986 · about 1:25 pm local time
- Place
- Glenwood Spring, Colorado · Glenwood Springs · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 177RG · all 177RGs on the register
- Registration
- N33215 · no longer on the register · serial 177RG0922
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ON TAKEOFF THE ACFT BECAME AIRBORNE, SETTLED BACK ONTO THE RWY, RAN OFF THE END OF THE RWY INTO A 150 FOOT DEEP RIVER GORGE, AND IMPACTED IN THE RIVER.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,598 hours in all; 147 in this make and model; 159 in the last 90 days; 6,598 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,893 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 12, 1986; 93 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming I0360-A1B6D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: APA Denver CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 14, 3,305 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 35 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:50 pm from EGE, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| 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.
Other NTSB records under N33215 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.