Mooney M20D accident near Clintwood, VA
On May 29, 2009, a Mooney M20D (airplane) was involved in an accident near Clintwood, VA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- May 29, 2009
- Place
- Clintwood, VA
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20D · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 37.260°N, 82.373°W
- NTSB ID
- 20090601X31419
Official records · ERA09FA311
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Record of Conversation FAA-ATC: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On May 29, 2009, about 1345 eastern daylight time, a Mooney M20D, N6628U, collided with mountainous terrain near Clintwood, Virginia. The private pilot was killed and the airplane was substantially damaged. The personal flight was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91, and no flight plan was filed for the visual flight rules flight. The flight originated at Elizabethton Municipal Airport (0A9), Elizabethton, Tennessee, about 1311. According to the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, the pilot's wife reported that the pilot departed from 0A9 enroute to Ashland Regional Airport (DWU), Ashland, Kentucky. When he did not arrive, and was overdue, she reported him missing. A witness near the accident site observed the airplane flying in a northerly direction towards a mountain ridge (Pine Mountain). He said during that time "there was a lot of fog at the top of the Mountain." The witness soon lost sight of the airplane, but could still hear the engine running. He then heard the engine make a sputtering noise, followed by a loud crash. At that point, he drove his car around the base of the mountain to see if there was any smoke. When he did not see any smoke, he thought “everything was fine.” The following day he heard a report that a small airplane was missing. He subsequently contacted the local authorities and assisted them by directing them to the location where the missing airplane had crashed. According to the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) incident commander, after receiving notification of the missing airplane they mobil
Probable cause
The pilot’s continued visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in controlled flight into terrain.
More accidents in VA
- Boeing 757-200, Sep 11, 2001
- Beech B99, Sep 23, 1985
- Beech 65, Sep 10, 1995
- Beech 200, Oct 24, 2004
- Piper PA-31-310, Nov 14, 1982
Browse: Virginia · 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.
