Mooney M20R N53WM

Summary

On 29 May 2004 at about 15:30 local time, a Mooney M20R registered N53WM, operated by Ivan Burns, was involved in an accident near Warren, Vermont, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 May 2004 at 15:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Warren, Vermont, United States

Nearest airport

Warren-Sugarbush (0B7)

Coordinates

44.1167, -72.8269

Aircraft

Mooney M20R

Registration

N53WM

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Ivan Burns

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bedford → Warren

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC04CA135

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's improper flare, which resulted in a hard landing. A factor in this accident was the wind shear as reported by the pilot.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was landing on runway 4, a 2,575-foot-long, 30-foot-wide, asphalt runway. The pilot reported that the airplane was approximately 10 feet above the runway, when it encountered a strong wind shear and dropped "fast and hard" onto the runway. The pilot aborted the landing and was informed over the Unicom, that the airplane's left main landing gear had separated. The pilot elected to divert to another airport, where he performed a gear up landing, without further incident. The elevation at the accident site was about 1,470 feet. Winds reported at an airport that was located about 13 miles northeast of the accident site, and at an elevation of 1,165 feet, about the time of the accident, were from 310 degrees, at 14 knots, with 21 knot gusts.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.