Cessna 340A accident near Bailey, Colorado, October 21, 1987
On October 21, 1987 at about 5:35 pm local time, a Cessna 340A, registered N4132G, was destroyed in an accident near Bailey, Colorado. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was 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
- October 21, 1987 · about 5:35 pm local time
- Place
- Bailey, Colorado · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 340A · all 340As on the register
- Registration
- N4132G · no longer on the register · serial 340A0303
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED ON THE SIDE OF A MOUNTAIN DURING VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS. THE PILOT HAD BEEN IN VOICE AND RADAR CONTACT WITH AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL UNTIL THE AIRCRAFT DISAPPEARED FROM RADAR. THE PILOT REPORTED SEVERE TURBULENCE AND A ROUGH RUNNING ENGINE TO ATC AS HE WAS NEARING A MOUNTAIN PASS. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE THOUGHT THE ROUGH RUNNING ENGINE WAS DUE TO FUEL CONTAMINATION. A WITNESS REPORTED THAT THE PILOT HAD SAID THE FUEL HAD CONTAINED ALOT OF WATER. THE PILOT REPORTED TO ATC THAT HE HAD JUST LOST THE ENGINE AND HE WAS ATTEMPTING TO MAKE IT THROUGH A SADDLE. A SIGMET HAD BEEN ISSUED FOR THAT REGION AND THE SEVERE TURBULENCE WAS CONFIRMED BY ANOTHER PILOT. ENGINE TEARDOWN REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PREIMPACT MECHANICAL FAILURE/MALFUNCTION.
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; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 4,809 hours in all; 364 in this make and model; 68 in the last 90 days; 27 in the last 30 days; 4,342 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,146 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 17, 1987; 95 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,990 lb
- Seats: 6
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-520N (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: APA Englewood CO at 5:20 pm
- Destination: Buena Vista CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from DEN, 38 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.