414 Epic E1000 N98FK Crash at Steamboat Springs: LNAV+V Advisory Glidepath Trap
Aviation News Talk – Pilot Stories, Safety Tips & General Aviation News
Glass Cockpit Publishing
4.8 • 730 Ratings
🗓️ 17 February 2026
⏱️ 40 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
An Epic E1000, N98FK, crashed near Steamboat Springs, Colorado during a night RNAV (GPS) approach. The lateral track was almost perfect, but the vertical profile was fatal: the airplane remained on an LNAV+V "advisory glide slope" and descended below the 9,100-foot MDA into terrain.
Max explains what Garmin calls Advisory Vertical Guidance, why LNAV+V can look nearly identical to an LPV on the PFD, and why it does not provide obstacle protection below minimums. He shows the airplane crossed the FAF MABKY and stepdown fix WDCHK essentially on altitude—then continued descending instead of leveling at MDA.
Max reviews the three requirements in 91.175(c) for descending below an MDA, explains why many autopilots will fly any coupled glidepath right through minimums unless you intervene, and decodes chart warnings like "Visual Segment – Obstacles" / "34:1 is not clear." He also shares his own simulator experience flying the RNAV (GPS) Z RWY 32 at KSBS and hitting the same mountain when the autopilot was coupled to the advisory glidepath.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Have you ever thought about how similar everything looks in the cockpit when you're flying to LPV minimums versus to LNAV plus V minimums? |
| 0:08.0 | Think about it for a moment. |
| 0:10.0 | Literally everything on the PFD is identical, except for inside the HSI, where in one case you see small letters LPV, in the other case, you see LNAV plus V. |
| 0:21.9 | And in both cases, all of the needles are centered, and you get a reassuring picture that makes your brain say, okay, we're good. |
| 0:28.9 | Yet, in one case, you're perfectly safe, and in the other case, you may fly into the side of a mountain. |
| 0:35.6 | Tonight we're going to talk about the crash of November 98 Fox Trot Kilo, an epic E-1000, |
| 0:41.7 | the crash near Steamboat Springs, Colorado last week. |
| 0:45.0 | And like the DCA mid-air collision, I think it was an accident just waiting to happen. |
| 0:51.1 | The aircraft was flying an RNAV GPS approach with a plus V advisory glide path, |
| 0:55.8 | which for all the world looks like a normal GPS or ILS glide slope, except that it can take |
| 1:02.8 | you through terrain. And we'll also talk about the three important criteria that must be met |
| 1:07.5 | before you're permitted to descend below an MDA. |
| 1:11.5 | And I'll talk about my experience flying this approach in a simulator and hitting the same mountain. |
| 1:16.6 | Hello again and welcome to Aviation News Talk, where we talk in general aviation. |
| 1:20.3 | My name is Max Truscott. I've been flying for 50 years. |
| 1:22.8 | I'm the author of several books in the 2008 National Flight Instructor of the Year. |
| 1:26.7 | And my mission is to help you become |
| 1:28.3 | the safest possible pilot. The last week in episode 413, we talked with Matt Bergwall about the |
| 1:34.7 | newly announced Cirrus G3 Vision Jet. So if you didn't hear that episode, you may want to check it out |
| 1:40.0 | at AviationNewsTalk.com slash 413. And if you're new to the show, welcome. Glad you found us. |
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