Mooney M20D N1907Y

Summary

On 6 September 2004 at about 16:10 local time, a Mooney M20D registered N1907Y was involved in an accident near Pagosa Springs, Colorado, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

6 September 2004 at 16:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Pagosa Springs, Colorado, United States

Nearest airport

Stevens Field (2V1)

Coordinates

37.2775, -107.0558

Aircraft

Mooney M20D

Registration

N1907Y

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pagosa Springs → Durango

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN04FA134

1 person died.

the pilot's inadequate preflight planning and his failure to maintain directional control. Contributing factors were the pilot's failure to abort the takeoff, and the rough and uneven runway surface.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot and his wife made several attempts to take off but aborted each one. Airport personnel said that when the pilot came into the office, he appeared thoroughly shaken by the experience. He told employees he would not take off from the airport until runway construction had been completed and entire length of the runway was made available. He also told a mechanic that there was a shimmy in the nose wheel steering. He contracted with a local flight instructor to deliver the airplane after the repairs had been made. Delivery was postponed on three different occasions and over a period of two months when discrepancies were discovered: the right fuel tank leaked and the VOR receivers did not work; instead of being mounted on the windshield center post, the magnetic compass dangled by a few wires underneath the instrument panel, and the airspeed indicator was twisted about 60 degrees in the instrument panel. The fuel cap O-rings were "severely cracked and worn." The communication radios stopped working, the battery required charging, and the airplane required a jump-start. There were numerous 9-volt and AA batteries on the rear floor and in the door pockets. The flight instructor elected not to deliver the airplane. The pilot elected to ferry the airplane home. During the takeoff roll, the airplane departed the left side of the runway and skipped across the ground before striking a 600-pound concrete block and coming to rest inverted. A post-impact fire ensued. The 9,000-foot runway was undergoing reconstruction and only 3,900 feet was available. An additional 600-foot displaced threshold was available for takeoffs. The useable portion of runway was rough and uneven.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.