Mooney M20F N9379M
26 March 1989 · San Andreas, California, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 26 March 1989 at about 20:20 local time, a Mooney M20F registered N9379M, operated by Drago, Charles R., was involved in an accident near San Andreas, California, United States. 4 people were on board and 4 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 20:20
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- San Andreas, California, United States
- Coordinates
- 38.1991, -120.6202
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20F
- Registration
- N9379M
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Drago, Charles R.
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Cameron Park → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX89FA133
People
4 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
INTERRUPTION OF ENGINE POWER FOR AN UNDETERMINED REASON, AND FAILUE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN AIRSPEED, WHICH RESULTED IN A STALL/SPIN. A FACTOR RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT WAS: LACK OF ALTITUDE TO RECOVER FROM THE STALL/SPIN.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
WITNESSES RPRTD THERE WAS AN INTERRUPTION OF ENG POWER AS THE ACFT WAS MANEUVERING AT LOW ALT, THEN IT ENTERED A DSCNT WITH THE WINGS ROTATING & CRASHED. A SWATH THRU THE TREES IN THE IMPACT AREA INDICATED THE ACFT WAS IN A LEFT WING LOW/NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE WHEN IT CRASHED. THE PROP BLADES HAD EVIDENCE OF CHORDWISE SCRATCHES & DEEP LEADING EDGE GOUGES. ALSO, A TREE LIMB WAS FOUND THAT HAD BEEN SLICED; IT CONTAINED BLACK PAINT THAT MATCHED PAINT ON THE PROP.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Mooney M20F accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Oct 1989 | Mooney M20F | Pensacola, Florida, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Aug 1989 | Mooney M20F | Davis, Oklahoma, United States | John Cayias | No injuries | - |
| 13 Aug 1989 | Mooney M20F | Mound City, Kansas, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 8 Apr 1989 | Mooney M20F | Prescott, Arizona, United States | Joseph Leyva | No injuries | - |
| 15 Apr 1989 | Mooney M20F | Lynch, Kentucky, United States | Charles W. Foley | Fatal | 2 |
| 26 Jan 1989 | Mooney M20F | Truckee, California, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Sep 1989 | Piper PA-31-350 | Ontario, California, United States | Ameriflight | Fatal | 1 |
| 26 Sep 1989 | Piper PA-25-235 | Warner Springs, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 19 Sep 1989 | Cessna 310K | Ojai, California, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 30 Sep 1989 | Cessna 182 | Eureka, California, United States | Nothern Air | No injuries | - |
| 30 Sep 1989 | Cessna 152 | Lancaster, California, United States | West Coast Air Center | Fatal | 2 |
| 29 Sep 1989 | Bellanca 17-30A | Palo Alto, California, United States | Klouda, Linda K. | Minor injuries | - |