Amateur-built RV-6 accident near Franktown, Colorado, July 27, 1997
On July 27, 1997 at about 4:00 pm local time, a amateur-built RV-6, registered N443MW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Franktown, Colorado (Kostroski airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain control of the aircraft during landing roll. A factor was the uneven runway surface.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 27, 1997 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Franktown, Colorado · Kostroski · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RV-6
- Registration
- N443MW · registry record · serial 21057
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During landing roll, at a private grass air strip, a bump was encountered and the nose of the aircraft pitched down. The aircraft nosed over and came to rest inverted causing damage to the right wing and vertical stabilizer.
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: 3,541 hours in all; 80 in this make and model; 36 in the last 90 days; 23 in the last 30 days; 3,404 as pilot in command; 713 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 416 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 20, 1997; 51 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,850 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: APA Englewood CO at 3:48 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 2,700 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:45 pm from APA, 10 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.
Other NTSB records under N443MW 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.