Amateur-built DHC-7-102 incident near Gunnison, Colorado, January 12, 1989
On January 12, 1989 at about 1:50 am local time, a amateur-built DHC-7-102, registered N926RM, suffered minor damage in an incident near Gunnison, Colorado (Gunnison airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). No one was hurt; 51 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE FATIGUE FAILURE OF THE DOWN LOCK MECHANISM RESULTING FROM THE NON-COMPLIANCE WITH A SERVICE BULLETIN BY COMPANY MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 12, 1989 · about 1:50 am local time
- Place
- Gunnison, Colorado · Gunnison · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 51 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DHC-7-102
- Registration
- N926RM · no longer on the register · serial 6
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ROCKY MOUNTAIN AIRWAYS FLT 2276 WAS ON A SCHEDULED FLT FROM DENVER, CO TO GUNNISON, CO. DURING TOUCHDOWN AT GUNNISON, THE RIGHT LANDING GEAR PARTIALLY COLLAPSED. THE CAPT WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CONTROL DURING THE LANDING ROLL. HE TAXIED THE ACFT OFF THE RUNWAY ONTO THE ACFT PARKING APRON WHERE HE SHUT THE ENGINES DOWN AND THE PAX WERE DEPLANNED. SUBSEQUENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE LOCK STRUT IN THE LANDING GEAR ASSEMBLY HAD FAILED DUE TO FATIGUE. A SERVICE BULLETIN REGARDING THE INSPECTION AND REPLACEMENT OF THIS PART HAD NOT BEEN COMPLIED WITH.
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: 8,806 hours in all; 3,432 in this make and model; 251 in the last 90 days; 98 in the last 30 days; 6,635 as pilot in command; 300 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 27,635 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, January 4, 1989; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 43,500 lb
- Seats: 59
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W PT6A-50 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DEN Denver CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0, 7,198 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 7°F (-14°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 48 |
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.