Mooney M20M accident near Cary, NC
On May 3, 2004, a Mooney M20M (airplane) was involved in an accident near Cary, NC. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- May 3, 2004
- Place
- Cary, NC
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20M · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 34.771°N, 78.814°W
- NTSB ID
- 20040511X00585
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On May 3, 2004, at 1520 eastern daylight time, a Mooney M20M, N91514, registered to TLSB INC. and operated by private pilot collided with trees and a lake, and sank in 8 feet of water while attempting an approach to Raleigh Durham International Airport (RDU), Cary, North Carolina. The flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with an instrument flight plan filed. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The private pilot and passenger were fatally injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The flight departed Columbia Owens Airport, Columbia, South Carolina, on May 3, 2004 at 1350. Review of the transcription of voice recordings revealed, at 1018, the pilot received a preflight briefing from Anderson, South Carolina Automated Flight Service Station. The pilot received a standard briefing for the requested route of flight. Included in the briefing was an AIRMET covering the Raleigh-Durham area calling for occasional ceilings below 1,000 feet above ground level and visibility below three miles in precipitation, mist, and fog, with conditions ending between 1700 and 1900. At 1254, the pilot requested to file an instrument flight plan to Raleigh-Durham International Airport, North Carolina. At 1350, the flight departed Columbia Owens Airport and the pilot established radio contact with Columbia approach for cross-country instrument flight to Raleigh Durham International Airport. At 1436, the pilot established radio contact with Raleigh approach control, reported altitude, heading and speed.
Probable cause
The pilot experienced spatial disorientation, which resulted in a loss of control and the subsequent collision with trees. Factors were low ceilings and fog.
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Browse: North Carolina · Mooney aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
