| Status: | Final |
| Date: | Sunday 9 October 1949 |
| Time: | 17:54 |
| Type: |  Curtiss C-46E-1-CS Commando |
| Operator: | Slick Airways |
| Registration: | NC59485 |
| MSN: | 2939 |
| First flight: | 1945 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 8585 |
| Engines: | 2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-75 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Damaged beyond repair |
| Location: | 4 km (2.5 mls) NW of Cheyenne Airport, WY (CYS) ( United States of America)
|
| Phase: | Approach (APR) |
| Nature: | Cargo |
| Departure airport: | Las Vegas-McCarran Field, NV (LAS/KLAS), United States of America |
| Denver (unknown airport), CO, United States of America | |
| Flightnumber: | 11-8 |
Arriving near Denver, visibility and ceiling were below company minimums, so the aircraft was cleared for the revised alternate Rock Springs, with permission to land at Laramie. Near Laramie, the crew decided to continue on to Cheyenne which then had 3500 feet ceiling and lower broken clouds, visibility 20 miles. By the time the aircraft was over the Cheyenne range, the ceiling was 900 feet with sleet. The aircraft was cleared to descend from FL140 to FL80. Severe turbulence as then encountered, including severe icing. The Curtiss C-46 lost control on approach and crashed just 2,5 miles short of the airport.
Probable Cause:
PROBABLE CAUSE: "Loss of control of the aircraft during an instrument approach to Cheyenne, under conditions of heavy icing and severe turbulence."
Classification:
TurbulenceLoss of control
Sources:
» CAB File No. 1-0100Photos
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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