DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — A Cessna plane lost engine power before crashing in the median of E-470 in the Centennial area earlier this month, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
The NTSB said the two people on the plane -- the pilot and a flight instructor – sustained minor injuries in the crash, which happened around 2:15 p.m. March 8.
> The video above aired on March 8
The pilot told investigators the flight was cleared for approach as they neared the Centennial Airport, where they planned to land. When the pilot contacted the control tower, the controller requested that they sidestep to the parallel runway to land, the NTSB said. As the pilot tried to increase the throttle, the engine did not respond, and he realized it had lost power.
The airplane was unable to glide to the runway, so the flight instructor "executed a forced landing to the center median" of the interstate, the NTSB said. The plane crashed and caught fire about a half-mile short of the runway threshold.
The flight instructor told the NTSB there was no indication the engine had lost power – no vibration, coughing or sputtering.
The pilot was able to avoid traffic on the interstate before bringing the aircraft to a stop, South Metro Fire Rescue said.
The Cessna P210N single-engine, six-passenger aircraft had taken off from Dodge City Regional Airport in Kansas.
The same plane sustained "substantial" damage in a separate incident in Florida on Feb. 20, 2021, according to a previous NTSB report.
In that incident, the pilot returned to the departure airport after hearing a clicking sound while in the air. When the plane touched down on the runway, the tail seemed to "fall out" from under the pilot, according to the report. The pilot got out and discovered the two main landing gears had collapsed, resulting in damage to the horizontal stabilizer, left wing and fuselage.
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