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DEN90LA079

1990-03-24 · COLORADO SPRING, Colorado, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport COS

Current FAA registration · N19948

Make / Model
CESSNA 172M
Year of manufacture
1972 · 18 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-320 SERIES (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19720821
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A18C9F

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

THE PILOT'S DECISION TO INITIATE FLIGHT INTO KNOWN ADVERSE WEATHER, AND HIS IN-FLIGHT PLANNING/DECISON. FACTORS RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND THE ACCUMULATION OF AIRFRAME ICE.

Factual narrative

THE PLT & HIS WIFE WERE EN ROUTE FROM MT VERNON, OH, TO COLORADO SPRINGS, CO. THEY LANDED AT MCCOOK, NE, FOR FUEL & AN UPDATED WX BRIEFING. THE PLT WAS TOLD MVFR EXISTED AT THE DESTN, BUT IT WAS FORECAST TO CLR AT HIS ETA. HE DEPD MCCOOK WITHOUT A FLT PLAN. HE SAID HE ENCTRD 'ICE IN CLEAR SKIES' & LANDED AT AKRON, CO. AFTER A 1.5 HR WAIT, HE DEPD AKRON AT 1740 MST WITH 27.2 GAL OF FUEL ON BOARD. HE ENCTRD IMC & AIRFRAME ICE NEAR COLORADO SPRINGS & DECLARED AN EMERG. APCH CONTROL VECTORED HIM FOR AN ILS RWY 35 APCH. THE 1ST APCH WAS MISSED DUE TO ICE ON THE WINDSHIELD, BUT THE PLT SAW THE RWY ON THE 2ND APCH. WHEN OVER THE RWY & ABOUT TO FLARE, HE REDUCED POWER. WITH THE EXTRA WEIGHT &LOSS OF LIFT (DUE TO ICE ACCUMULATION), THE ACFT DROPPED & LANDED HARD. THE PLT WAS NOT INSTRUMENT RATED, BUT HAD TAKEN THE WRITTEN INSTRUMENT TEST & WAS READY FOR THE FLT TEST. THE 1920 MST WX WAS IN PART: 200' OVC, 1/4 VIS WITH FOG, WIND FROM 150 DEG AT 6 KTS. MIN RVR FOR THE APCH WAS 2400'. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1990_DEN90LA079.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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