19981119031419A

Acft crashed on landing (.19) on November 19, 1998, at 1450 hours pacific standard time, a Mooney M20F, N3500X, experienced a loss of engine power after takeoff at the Cable Airport, Upland, California. The pilot returned to the airport and made a forced landing diagonally across the runways before coming to rest on a taxiway. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, and the private pilot/owner received minor injuries. A passenger received serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions existed for the personal flight. (.4) during the initial climb after takeoff, the engine began to sputter. The pilot leveled the airplane and the engine ran smoothly. Subsequently, the engine quit while on a downwind leg. According to witnesses, it had rained during the two weeks prior to the accident and the airplane had sat outside in transient parking. One witness stated he had witnessed an inspection of the o-ring seals on the fuel caps and they showed evidence of deterioration. Witnesses further reported that on the day of the accident, the aircraft had not been refueled. During the engine run-up prior to takeoff, the engine sputtered and quit. After the accident, recovery personne l removed 1.5 cups of water from the left wing and 2 tablespoons of water from the right wing. They further stated that each wing had 17 gallons of fuel. Examination of the fuel system revealed deteriorated o-ring seals on the fuel caps, and rusted filler ports on the wings. A liquid substance was removed from the fuel injection servo and the engine driven fuel pump fuel line. The liquid substance tested positively for water with water finding paste. The fuel flow divider was disassembled and showed no evidence of damage; however, it was noted that there was water on the fuel side of the diaphragm. No further discrepancies were noted with the engine. (-23) according to the pilot's statement, after a normal take-off, the aircraft engine started losing power at about 300 feet al. The pilot tried to make it back to the airport, but was too low. The engine quit, then restarted again when he turned downwind. While on downwind, the engine quit completely, and the pilot made an approach between two hangars and crossed the active runway diagonally, crossed another taxiway and came to rest near a row of open hangars on the north side of the airport. The aircraft impacted the pavement nose low, with no prop rotation. The engine mounts failed on impact. The right wing impacted the pavement and the aircraft slid sideways about 100 feet and came to rest between some parked aircraft and the hangar row. The right wing had severe impact damage to it's outer one third. The left wing had lesser damage to the outer one third. The aft section of the fuselage was badly wrinkled. The cockpit was heavily damaged and deformed. The right wing fuel tank had no visible fuel, the left wing fuel tank was almost full, about two inches from the filler neck. The throttle, mixture and prop controls were full forward. The magnetos were off and the keys removed. The fuel selector was pointing aft. The manual gear leverl was in the forward, stowed position with the lock covering the top of the lever.