Mooney M20C N6242U

Summary

On 10 January 2013 at about 17:30 local time, a Mooney M20C registered N6242U was involved in an accident near Moriarty, New Mexico, 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

10 January 2013 at 17:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Moriarty, New Mexico, United States

Coordinates

34.9822, -106.0050

Aircraft

Mooney M20C

Registration

N6242U

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Moriarty → Moriarty

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN13CA134

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s improper fuel management, which resulted in a loss of engine power during cruise flight due to fuel starvation.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Before the accident flight, the pilot purchased 30 gallons of aviation gasoline, following which the fuel gauges indicated near half for each tank. During the accident flight, the pilot flew about 12 minutes south of the departure airport with the left fuel tank selected then turned north to return to the airport. About 5 minutes after turning north, the engine went to idle power. The pilot turned the carburetor heat on and activated the boost pump, and the engine returned to normal cruise power. The pilot indicated that, at this point, she should have switched the fuel selector valve to the right fuel tank but did not. The engine operated at cruise power for about 1 minute then quit completely. The pilot reported that because the airplane was about 1,500 feet above ground level and changing the fuel selector valve requires moving the pilot seat back about 18 inches “with no control of the aircraft,” she decided to perform a forced landing on a farm road directly ahead. During the landing, the right wing struck a fence post, and the airplane subsequently came to rest in a plowed field. Both wings sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that the accident was caused by fuel starvation and that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.