Mooney M20D accident near Pagosa Springs, CO
On September 6, 2004, a Mooney M20D (airplane) was involved in an accident near Pagosa Springs, CO. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- September 6, 2004
- Place
- Pagosa Springs, CO
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20D · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 37.278°N, 107.056°W
- NTSB ID
- 20040910X01386
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 6, 2004, approximately 1010 mountain daylight time, a Mooney M20D, N1907Y, piloted by a private pilot, was destroyed when it impacted terrain during takeoff at Stevens Field, Pagosa Springs, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91. No flight plan had been filed. The pilot was fatally injured. The flight was originating at the time of the accident, and was en route to Durango, Colorado (DRO). The following is based on witness interviews and written statements: The pilot and his wife had visited the Pagosa Springs area in July 2004. When he got ready to return home in Lake Havasu, Arizona, the pilot made several takeoff attempts, but aborted each one. Airport personnel said that when he 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 then told a mechanic that there was a shimmy in the nose wheel steering. While the mechanic inspected the airplane, the pilot approached a local flight instructor and asked him for his advice on how to take off from the airport. After questioning by the instructor, the pilot said he didn't know how to make a short-field takeoff, and that he had forgotten how to compute density altitude. When asked to produce the aircraft's operating limitations and weight and balance documents, the pilot couldn't find them. The mec
Probable cause
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.
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Browse: Colorado · 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.
