Cessna 172E accident near Watkins, Colorado, July 3, 1998
On July 3, 1998 at about 1:40 am local time, a Cessna 172E, registered N7780U, was destroyed in an accident near Watkins, Colorado. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate evaluation of the weather which resulted in an encounter with a microburst. Contributing was the airplane's climb capability exceeded by the microburst, and rising terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 3, 1998 · about 1:40 am local time
- Place
- Watkins, Colorado · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172E · all 172Es on the register
- Registration
- N7780U · no longer on the register · serial 172251780
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot landed at Front Range Airport, Watkins, Colorado, refueled, and waited 90 minutes for a thunderstorm to pass. He then took off en route to Englewood, Colorado. He returned to the airport shortly thereafter because he encountered 'steady state precipitation.' He waited for 30 minutes 'until the rain and virga passed and the wind [had] died down.' He took off from runway 17 into a 4 to 6 knot wind from 160 degrees. After climbing about 400 to 500 feet agl, he began to feel the airplane sinking rapidly. He maintained an airspeed of 60 to 65 knots during the descent, and the stall warning horn sounded intermittently. The airplane collided with rising terrain south of the airport. It was the pilot's opinion that he had encountered a microburst. At the time of the accident, Denver International Airport, located 10 miles northwest of Front Range Airport, reported there were several cumulonimbus clouds at 5500 feet in the area, with winds from the east at 20 knots, gusts to 26 knots, and peak winds at 30 knots. A line of cumulonimbus clouds, stretching from the northwest to the northeast, were moving north with rain showers to the northeast.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 506 hours in all; 426 in this make and model; 105 in the last 90 days; 36 in the last 30 days; 470 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,787 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 14, 1998; 75 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-300-D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FTG at 1:40 am
- Destination: APA Englewood CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 20 knots, gusting 26
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 11,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from DEN, 8 miles away
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.
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.