Piper PA-31T2 accident near Louisville, Colorado, September 15, 1989
On September 15, 1989 at about 7:36 pm local time, a Piper PA-31T2, registered N63XL, was destroyed in an accident near Louisville, Colorado (Jefferson County airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE AIRSPEED, WHILE MANEUVERING FOR SPACING IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN, WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL AT LOW ALTITUDE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 15, 1989 · about 7:36 pm local time
- Place
- Louisville, Colorado · Jefferson County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-31T2 · all PA-31T2s on the register
- Registration
- N63XL · no longer on the register · serial 31T8166037
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT & 2 MECHANICS WERE ON A MAINT TEST FLT. AS THE ACFT WAS ON A STRAIGHT-IN APCH TO RWY 11 FROM THE WEST, THE PLT WAS ADVISED OF TRAFFIC AHEAD & TOLD TO SLOW HIS SPEED AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. THE PLT ACKNOWLEDGED. ABOUT 15 SEC LATER, THE CTLR TOLD THE PLT (OF N63XL) TO MAKE A 360 DEG TURN TO THE LEFT FOR SPACING. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, WITNESSES OBSERVED THE ACFT ENTER A STEEP BANK (TURN), THEN GO INTO A STEEP SPIRALING, NOSE DOWN, DESCENT & CRASH. NO PREIMPACT MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE OF THE ACFT OR ENGS WAS FOUND.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 27,000 hours in all; 3,500 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 996 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 15, 1989
- Maximum gross weight: 9,000 lb
- Seats: 8
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6A-135 (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: BJC Broomfield CO at 7:12 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 11, 9,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:45 pm from BJC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.