# Accident 19980829022309A: Mooney M20F, Fort Collins, CO, August 29, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 29, 1998
- Place: Fort Collins, CO
- Airport: Downtown Ft Collins Airpark
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: In Traffic Pattern-Circling
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.5906° N, 105.1291° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.5906&lon=-105.1291&mi=10
- Aircraft: N377X, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N377X-2005-09-02) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Mooney M20F (registry code 5870214, https://openairdocs.org/model/mooney-m20f) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming I0360 series (registry code 41515, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-i0360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: MOONEY M20F
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW98FA378](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98FA378) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980829022309A

## Narrative

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

ACFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES, ACFT WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE. (-23)N377X WAS DESTROYED FOLLOWING A LOSS OF CONTROL WHILE TURNING ONTP THE BASE LEG IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN AT FORT COLLINS DOWNTOWN AIRPARK, FORT COLLINS COLORADO.  THE COMMERCIAL PILOT AND HIS PASSENGER WERE FATALLY INJURED.  ACCORDING TO WITNESSES, THE AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED FLYING AT LOW ALTITUDE "CLOSE IN DOWNWIND" TO RUNWAY 11.  WITNESSES STATED THAT AS THE AIRPLANE TURNED ONTO BASE LEG FOR LANDING, IT DESCENDED AND IMPACTED THE GROUND.  POSTIMPACT FIRE CONSUMED THE AIRPLANE.  (PILOT AND AIRCRAFT RECORDS DESTROYED IN POSTIMPACT FIRE.  AIRCRAFT TIMES AND PILOT TIMES ARE FROM INSURANCE RECORDS AND CONVERSATION WITH MECHANIC COMPLETING LAST ANNUAL.  REGULATORY CHECKRIDE IS UNKNOWN).

## 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 FTW98FA378](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98FA378), Aug 29, 1998: Mooney M20F (N377X), Fort Collins, CO, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's inadvertent stall/mush due to his excessive angle of bank during his traffic pattern turn to base. Factors were the pilot's improper downwind altitude, the pilot not properly setting his…

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.

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