# Accident 19971115032989A: Mooney M20, Big Bear, CA, November 15, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 15, 1997, 06:59 local time
- Place: Big Bear, CA
- Airport: Big Bear City Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.2594° N, 116.8399° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.2594&lon=-116.8399&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5231B, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5231B-2013-08-15) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Mooney M20 (registry code 5870202, https://openairdocs.org/model/mooney-m20) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: MOONEY M20
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Pilot flight hours: 96 total, 92 in this make and model, 96 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX98FA039](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX98FA039) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19971115032989A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

VFR PILOT DEPARTED INTO IMC. LOST CONTROL IN STEER TURN EXITING. LOW CLOUDS(.4) THE PILOT PERFORMED A PREFLIGHT INSPECTION AND TAXIED IN AN EASTERLY DIRECTION TOWARD AN AREA WHERE WITNESSES INDICATED THE RISING SUN AND THE BLUE SKY WERE VISIBLE. THE PILOT ELECTED TO TAKEOFF ON RUNWAY 26 TOWARD AN AREA WHERE A 200-FOOT OVERCAST CEILING EXISTED AND THE VISIBILITY WAS 0.75 MILE. THE AIRPLANE CLIMBED INTO THE CLOUDS AND WITHIN 60 SECONDS DESCENDED INTO A MOUNTAINSIDE 0.8 MILES FROM THE AIRPORT WHILE IN A 90-DEGREE LEFT BANK TURN. AN EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED THE PRESENCE OF OIL LEAKAGE IN AN AFT DIRECTION ON THE BELLY AND ON THE ENGINE'S EXTERIOR. A PUDDLE OF OIL WAS FOUND IN THE PILOT'S HANGAR BELOW THE AREA WHERE THE ENGINE HAD BEEN LOCATED. NO EVIDENCE OF OIL STARVATION, OVERHEAT DISTRESS SIGNATURES, OR A POWER LOSS WAS FOUND DURING THE EXAMINATION. THE ATTITUDE INDICATOR HAD A HISTORY OF PRECESSION. THE BAGGAGE COMPARTMENT DOOR AND THE PILOT'S LAP BELT WERE FOUND UNLATCHED. NO MAINTENANCE LOGS WERE LOCATED. THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED 10 DAYS AFTER THE PILOT WAS ISSUED A PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE. THE PILOT'S FORMER FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR (CFI) REPORTED THAT THE PILOT "TINKERED"   WITH HIS ENGINE IN AN EFFORT AT STOPPING THE LEAKAGE. THE CFI CHARACTERIZED THE PILOT AS HAVING AN AGGRESSIVE PERSONALITY.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX98FA039](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX98FA039), Nov 15, 1997: Mooney M20 (N5231B), Big Bear, CA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: VFR flight by the pilot into instrument meteorological conditions (VMC), which led to spatial disorientation, loss of aircraft control, and an uncontrolled descent into terrain. Related factors were:…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.