Cessna 182 accident near Broomfield, Colorado, November 6, 2019
On November 6, 2019 at about 9:00 pm local time, a 1979 Cessna 182, registered N97596, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Broomfield, Colorado (Rocky Mountain Metropolitan 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 conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s inadvertent flight into icing conditions, which resulted in the accumulation of structural icing and an aerodynamic stall.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 6, 2019 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Broomfield, Colorado · Rocky Mountain Metropolitan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182 Q, built 1979 · all 182s on the register
- Registration
- N97596 · registry record · serial 18267143
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that, while operating in instrument meteorological conditions, the airplane started accumulating ice on the wings and windshield. He informed air traffic control (ATC) and requested to be diverted. ATC vectored him to a nearby airport for an instrument approach. Following completion of the instrument approach, while the airplane was about 10 ft above ground level, the airplane stalled and then landed hard on the runway. The pilot taxied the airplane to the ramp without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The Federal Aviation Administration's Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, FAA-H-8083-25B, provides information and guidance in a section titled, "Stalls," which stated, in part, that "as little as 0.8 millimeter of ice on the upper wing surface increases drag and reduces aircraft lift by 25 percent."
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
What happened, in order
- Other weather encounter during enroute
- Structural icing during enroute
- Aerodynamic stall/spin during landing defining event
- Hard landing during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Snow/ice › Effect on equipment
- cause Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Temp/humidity/pressure › Conducive to structural icing › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 430 hours in all; 82 in this make and model
- Last flight review: July 31, 2018
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,470.4 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 22, 2019
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 4,592 hours total
- Operator: Aero-Sphere Inc
The flight
- Departed from: APA Denver CO at 8:20 pm
- Destination: LMO Longmont CO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 30R, 9,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 700 ft
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.29 inHg
- Observation at 9:45 pm from KBJC, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
3 documents, released by the NTSB on January 10, 2020. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Record of Phone Conversation (Pilot) | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Damage Photos | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.