Second Fatal Accident There In A Week

More than anything Nadia Barghelame wanted to fly for the airlines and see the world. The 20-year old Colorado woman flew just about every day, building time in a plane she bought with money she made working for an online pharmacy. But those hopes were cut tragically short Friday when her Cessna 421 went down shortly after take-off at Centennial Airport, near Denver. Nadia and two other pilots were killed. It wasn't immediately clear which of the three was pilot-in-command at the time of the accident.

"She was an amazing woman," her brother, Ali Barghelame, told the Denver Post. "I swear she lived more in 20 years than most people lived in a lifetime."

Witnesses said the 421 (file photo of type, above) apparently suffered engine trouble on take-off. The pilot tried to circle back for a landing, but didn't make the field. Her brother said Nadia was still learning the aircraft and was scheduled to go up with an instructor -- but there was no immediate indication that she was doing that when the plane went down.

Centennial Officials: Don't Blame The Airport!

It was the second fatal accident at Centennial in a week. "It is rare to even have one accident; it is inexplicable to have two back to back on consecutive Fridays," airport director Robert Olislagers told the Post.

In the first incident, exactly a week before Nadia and her two companions were killed, a Flight Line, Inc., MU-2B-60 hauling checks for Vectra Bank, went down shortly after take-off from Centennial. It, too, apparently suffered engine failure and its crew also apparently tried to circle back to make the runway.

In that incident, 28-year old Paul Krysiak and 25-year old James Presba lost their lives. Krysiak was reportedly the PIC. Presba was observing, although Flight Line said he wasn't being trained.

Was the airport in any way to blame? Olislagers told the Denver Post, no way.

"If there's an accident on I-25, does the highway become unsafe?" he said Saturday, responding to questions about the airport's safety. "The airport itself is very safe."

Centennial is the nation's third-busiest airport with approximately 360,000 operations each year.

FMI: http://centennialairport.com