Piper Comanche Crash In Colorado (3 Dead)

SteveinIndy

SteveinIndy

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SteveinIndy
3 killed in plane crash in northeast Colorado
http://www.examiner.com/a-1553792~3_killed_in_plane_crash_in_northeast_Colorado.html
Aug 25, 2008 2:49 PM (51 mins ago) AP
YUMA, Colo. (Map, News) - Three people have died in the crash of a single-engine plane in Yuma, about 70 miles east of Denver. Yuma County Undersheriff Rick Schorzman says the plane crashed near Yuma Municipal Airport at about 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Witnesses say conditions were extremely foggy. Schorzman on Monday identified the victims as Robert Charles Moran, Dorothy Harlene Moran and Paul Nunn.
Schorzman says authorities think the Morans were married. Both were 71 and lived south of Yuma.

Nunn lived in Pueblo and authorities believe he was the pilot. They say he was in his 60s and is believed to have been Dorothy Moran's brother. The plane was a 1959 Piper PA-24-250 and was apparently headed from Pueblo to Yuma.

Federal investigators haven't returned calls.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
 
Last edited:
Yuma plane crash has local ties


Officials would not identify the victims.

By KAREN VIGIL
THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN

Three people died in a Sunday morning plane crash near Yuma County Airport after taking off earlier from Pueblo's Memorial Airport.

The accident occurred about 8:20 a.m. about a hundred yards northeast of the runway, while the single-engine, four seater aircraft was attempting a landing in extremely foggy conditions.

The plane with FAA Tail No. N54760 was registered to a Pueblo resident and pilot, said Yuma County Undersheriff Rick Schorzman.

He would not provide the names of the pilot or two passengers but said a preliminary investigation showed the three victims were related and that the two passengers resided in the Yuma area. Schorzman said names of the two men and a woman will be released when identification is confirmed, probably today.

The plane was attempting a landing when it crashed, said spokesman Mike Fergus of the Federal Aviation Administration's Northwest Mountain Region Office in Renton, Wash. The airport is about a mile southeast of Yuma on Colorado's northeastern plains, some 144 miles northeast of Denver. Witnesses told sheriff's officials that, "They heard the plane come over the airport and thought that it was making a turn to come back in, probably for a landing. There were extremely extremely foggy conditions," said Schorzman.

The plane that was burning when found had a current air worthiness certificate, meaning it was well-maintained, said Fergus.

He said the pilot last contacted the FAA to cancel his flight plan about 10 minutes before the crash, something that normally is done when a pilot has the runway in sight.

Fergus said officials from both the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash. The NTSB has official investigative responsibility while the FAA only notes the accident basics.

The NTSB usually posts a preliminary report on its Web site - www.ntsb.gov/ - about two weeks after a plane crash.


http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2008/08/25/news/local/doc48b23ffe7ac24981515320.txt
 
Witnesses say conditions were extremely foggy.
 
flyersfan31 said:
:rolleyes:

What was the wx like???
Click to expand...
It hadn't looked good since around 3AM that morning and didn't again until about nine hours later. This is from Plains Regional, 24 miles west.:

Code: 
KAKO 242053Z AUTO 15012KT 10SM CLR 28/16 A3015 RMK AO2 SLP152 T02780161 58018
KAKO 241953Z AUTO 14012KT 10SM CLR 26/16 A3017 RMK AO2 SLP160 T02610161
KAKO 241853Z AUTO 16015G21KT 10SM CLR 24/16 A3019 RMK AO2 SLP171 T02390161
KAKO 241753Z AUTO 14013KT 10SM FEW011 21/16 A3021 RMK AO2 SLP181 60001 T02060156 10206 20139 58001
KAKO 241742Z AUTO 15014G21KT 10SM SCT009 20/15 A3021 RMK AO2
KAKO 241653Z AUTO 14015KT 10SM OVC007 17/15 A3022 RMK AO2 SLP192 T01670150
KAKO 241612Z AUTO 14017KT 10SM OVC005 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2 CIG 002V008
KAKO 241553Z AUTO 15014KT 9SM OVC003 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2 CIG 001V006 SLP195 T01500144
KAKO 241543Z AUTO 14012KT 3SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2
KAKO 241534Z AUTO 13014KT 1 3/4SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2 VIS 1V4
KAKO 241526Z AUTO 14013G19KT 1 1/4SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3021 RMK AO2
KAKO 241453Z AUTO 13015KT 1/4SM FG VV001 14/14 A3021 RMK AO2 SLP191 60001 T01440144 51009
KAKO 241353Z AUTO 13013KT 1/4SM FG OVC001 14/14 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP188 P0001 T01440144
KAKO 241253Z AUTO 13015KT 1/4SM FG VV001 14/14 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP186 T01390139
KAKO 241153Z AUTO 10008KT 1/4SM FG VV001 14/14 A3018 RMK AO2 SLP177 T01440139 10178 20139 53001
KAKO 241053Z AUTO 08007KT 1/4SM FG VV001 14/14 A3016 RMK AO2 SLP168 T01440139
KAKO 240957Z AUTO 11005KT 3/4SM BR BKN001 BKN008 14/14 A3016 RMK AO2
KAKO 240953Z AUTO 11006KT 1 1/4SM BR BKN001 BKN008 14/14 A3016 RMK AO2 SLP167 T01440144
KAKO 240931Z AUTO 10007KT 1/2SM FG BKN001 BKN009 15/14 A3016 RMK AO2
KAKO 240919Z AUTO 11008KT 3/4SM BR FEW001 BKN009 15/15 A3017 RMK AO2
KAKO 240916Z AUTO 11008KT 1 1/4SM BR FEW001 SCT009 15/15 A3017 RMK AO2
KAKO 240912Z AUTO 10009KT 2 1/2SM BR FEW001 15/15 A3018 RMK AO2
KAKO 240853Z AUTO 12009KT 8SM CLR 17/16 A3018 RMK AO2 SLP170 T01670156 58007

Imperial, NE, 60 miles east reported:

Code: 
KIML 241453Z AUTO 15010KT 10SM OVC021 20/16 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP202 T02000156 50014
KIML 241418Z AUTO 15010KT 10SM SCT012 OVC023 19/16 A3020 RMK AO2
KIML 241353Z AUTO 15009KT 10SM BKN010 OVC021 18/16 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP204 T01830156
KIML 241323Z AUTO 15009KT 10SM BKN010 OVC022 18/16 A3019 RMK AO2

It wasn't a great day to be flying.
 
METAR KAKO 241353Z AUTO 13013KT 1/4SM FG OVC001 14/14 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP188 P0001 T01440144
METAR KAKO 241453Z AUTO 13015KT 1/4SM FG VV001 14/14 A3021 RMK AO2 SLP191 60001 T01440144 51009
SPECI KAKO 241526Z AUTO 14013G19KT 1 1/4SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3021 RMK AO2
SPECI KAKO 241534Z AUTO 13014KT 1 3/4SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2 VIS 1V4
SPECI KAKO 241543Z AUTO 14012KT 3SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2


There is no instrument approach into Yuma, CO.
 
This is sounding a lot more like suicide by airplane, than an "accident." Too sad that there were other victims.
 
dmccormack said:
Hmmm...

It couldn't be a "I've been in here a thousand times before and never had a problem...." scenario, could it?
Click to expand...

I was just thinking about that... and seems to me the most likely scenario. Interestingly enough, not only was there no IFR flight plan on file for this flight, Flightaware has none at all for this plane, ever.

Did this guy never fly instruments... fly instruments but never file...

One can only hope that they'll speak to us from the grave, so to speak, and we can all learn from it.
 
SCCutler said:
I was just thinking about that... and seems to me the most likely scenario. Interestingly enough, not only was there no IFR flight plan on file for this flight, Flightaware has none at all for this plane, ever.
Click to expand...

The recent Angel Flight crash in CT had a similar profile. TWO instrument flights in FA -- one on the accident day, and one early in June.

That's it.
 
Ah yes, the classic hazardous attitude of "Invulnerability" - one of the things I taught my students about in my class last night. So sad that he - and especially his pax - turned out to be vulnerable after all. :(
 
ejensen said:
He was trying to take his sister-in-law and her husband home.
Click to expand...

I am sorry; my post was harsh and unfeeling. What I meant, was that, by all appearances, the flight had a very poor chance of success, and the mere act of launching in those conditions was a near-suicidal one.
 
SCCutler said:
I was just thinking about that... and seems to me the most likely scenario. Interestingly enough, not only was there no IFR flight plan on file for this flight, Flightaware has none at all for this plane, ever.

Did this guy never fly instruments... fly instruments but never file...

One can only hope that they'll speak to us from the grave, so to speak, and we can all learn from it.
Click to expand...

If the speculation is true, I'm not sure what there is to learn. Don't make up your own approaches? Dont fly IMC without an IFR plan and on proper routes?

Do WE really need to learn these things?
 
SCCutler said:
I am sorry; my post was harsh and unfeeling. What I meant, was that, by all appearances, the flight had a very poor chance of success, and the mere act of launching in those conditions was a near-suicidal one.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've heard too many talking about 'roll-your-own' approaches in the boonies. This is the third pilot I've known who didn't make it.
 
ejensen said:
METAR KAKO 241353Z AUTO 13013KT 1/4SM FG OVC001 14/14 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP188 P0001 T01440144
METAR KAKO 241453Z AUTO 13015KT 1/4SM FG VV001 14/14 A3021 RMK AO2 SLP191 60001 T01440144 51009
SPECI KAKO 241526Z AUTO 14013G19KT 1 1/4SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3021 RMK AO2
SPECI KAKO 241534Z AUTO 13014KT 1 3/4SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2 VIS 1V4
SPECI KAKO 241543Z AUTO 14012KT 3SM BR OVC001 15/14 A3022 RMK AO2


There is no instrument approach into Yuma, CO.
Click to expand...

What the **** were they thinking?

Ah yes, the classic hazardous attitude of "Invulnerability" - one of the things I taught my students about in my class last night. So sad that he - and especially his pax - turned out to be vulnerable after all.
Click to expand...

That's probably what he was thinking....

Yeah, I've heard too many talking about 'roll-your-own' approaches in the boonies. This is the third pilot I've known who didn't make it.
Click to expand...

I know of a few too. One of the cases I know of from Europe (from a conversation over some beers with a friend who works with the Austrian version of the NTSB) had a survivor who stated that the pilot told him (in a response to a comment about how crappy the weather was by the survivor) something to the effect of: "I can see the trees below....I'll keep an eye out for where the trees end. That's the start of the airport." He ended up descending into a field a couple of miles short of his destination.
 
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