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DEN90LA181

1990-09-04 · DURANGO, Colorado, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport DRO

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

THE LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE AIRPLANE WHEN THE PILOT ENCOUNTERED TURBULENCE ON SHORT FINAL TO LAND.

Factual narrative

THE PRIVATE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO LAND AFTER RECEIVING A PILOT REPORT OF CALM WINDS. ON SHORT FINAL THE PLANE ENCOUNTERED A MICROBURST THAT ABRUPTLY INCREASED THE RATE OF DESCENT. THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO CHECK THE HIGH RATE OF DESCENT TO NO AVAIL. THE PLANE STRUCK THE RUNWAY, LANDED HARD, COLLAPSED THE LANDING GEAR, DAMAGED THE WING SPARS, AND CAME TO REST ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. AFTER EXITING THE WRECKAGE, THE PILOT SAID THE WIND WAS FROM 080 DEGREES AT 15, GUSTING TO 20. A WITNESS REPORTED THE WIND HAD CHANGED FROM CALM TO STRONG IN A FEW SECONDS, AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. THE INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT LIGHTNING AND VIRGA HAD BEEN SEEN IN THE AREA AND RAIN SHOWERS BEGAN WITHIN THREE MINUTES OF THE ACCIDENT. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1990_DEN90LA181.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

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