Beech 23 accident near Colorado Sprngs, Colorado, February 11, 1998
On February 11, 1998 at about 7:45 pm local time, a Beech 23, registered N2382L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Colorado Sprngs, Colorado (Colorado Springs Muni 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 inadvertent porpoise during landing roll. A factor was the ditch.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 11, 1998 · about 7:45 pm local time
- Place
- Colorado Sprngs, Colorado · Colorado Springs Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Beech 23 · all 23s on the register
- Registration
- N2382L · registry record · serial M-222
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings on runway 17R. Winds were reported from 180 degrees at 6 knots. While performing his second landing, he initiated a side slip to compensate for a slight right crosswind. Upon landing, the aircraft porpoised, then exited the left side of the runway, impacting a ditch. The pilot reported he believed the nose wheel had turned to the left due to the left rudder input, causing the aircraft to depart to the left side of the runway. However, according to the Raytheon Aircraft Company, the aircraft manufacturer, the Beech 23 was designed without nose wheel steering. The wheel casters and is moved only by utilization of the breaks and remains in a neutral position during flight, continually aligned with the fuselage.
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: student
- Flight time: 92 hours in all; 25 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,014 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 18, 1997; 6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-D2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: COS at 7:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17R, 13,500 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 12,000 ft; scat at 9,500 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 1°F (-17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:36 pm from COS
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.