Piper PA-28 accident near Steamboat Spgs, Colorado, November 25, 1989
On November 25, 1989 at about 6:56 pm local time, a Piper PA-28, registered N6385R, was destroyed in an accident near Steamboat Spgs, Colorado. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
CONTINUED VFR FLIGHT BY THE PILOT INTO INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (IMC) AND HIS DELAY IN DIVERTING OR REVERSING COURSE. THE TERRAIN, WEATHER CONDITIONS, WING ICE, AND TREES WERE CONSIDERED TO BE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 25, 1989 · about 6:56 pm local time
- Place
- Steamboat Spgs, Colorado · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-28 · all PA-28s on the register
- Registration
- N6385R · no longer on the register · serial 28-21560
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE EN ROUTE FROM BELOIT, KS, TO STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, CO, THE PLT LANDED AT FORT MORGAN, CO, FOR FUEL. HE TELEPHONED THE DENVER AFSS TO OBTAIN A WX BRIEFING & WAS TOLD VFR FLT WAS NOT RECOMMENDED. ACCORDING TO THE PLT, AS HE APCHD BUFFALO PASS AT 11,500 FT MSL, HE ENCTRD 'A SUDDEN, STRONG DOWNDRAFT' & APPLICATION OF FULL POWER DID NOT ARREST THE SINK RATE. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE STRUCK TREES AS THE PLT WAS TURNING AROUND. ACCORDING TO THE PASSENGER, IFR CONDITIONS WERE ENCTRD, THE ACFT BEGAN ACCUMULATING ICE & IT CRASHED DRG A TURN TO REVERSE DIRECTION. APRX 28 MI WEST AT HAYDEN (ELEV 6597'), THE 1050 MST WX WAS IN PART: SKY PARTIALLY OBSCD, 1000' SCATTERED, ESTD CEILING 3000' OVC, VIS 6 MI WITH LIGHT SNOW, WIND 250 DEG AT 7 KTS.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,065 hours in all; 161 in this make and model; 190 in the last 90 days; 58 in the last 30 days; 1,001 as pilot in command; 467 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,260 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 1, 1989; 42 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-E2A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3V4 Fort Morgan CO at 5:40 pm
- Destination: SBS Steamboat Spgs CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Sky: overcast; not recorded
- Temperature: 19°F (-7°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| 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 N6385R 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.