# Accident 20041209031349A: Mooney M20F, Fabens, TX, December 9, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 9, 2004, 15:14 local time
- Place: Fabens, TX
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Fcd/Prec Ldg From Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 31.5156° N, 106.1469° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.5156&lon=-106.1469&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3208F, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3208F-2016-09-09) (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
- Reported engine: CONT IO360*
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB DFW05LA033](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DFW05LA033) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20041209031349A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON DECEMBER 9, 2004, AT 1514 CST, A MOONEY 20-F, N3208F, REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY^PRIVACY DATA ^ ATTEMPTED AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON WEST BOUND INTERSTATE 10 (I-10) AT MILE MARKER 54 IN FABENS TEXAS WHILE ON A PRIVATE FLIGHT. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE FELT A SMALL VIBRATION FOLLOWED BY THE ENGINE RPM ACCELERATING TO 3000 RPM, THEN BACK TO NORMAL, AND AGAIN ACCELERATING TO 3300 RPM. THE PILOT THEN HEARD A LOUD BANG, THE AIRCRAFT SHOOK AND THEN THE ENGINE LOST ALL POWER. DURING THE EMERGENCY LANDING, THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK THE REAR UPPER PORTION OF A SEMI-TRUCK TRAVELING WEST ON I-10. HAVING OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT IN HIS REAR VIEW MIRROR, THE TRUCK DRIVER STATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT HIT AND THEN FLIPPED INVERTED ON TOP OF HIS RIG. THE AIRCRAFT THEN SLID OFF ONTO THE INTERSTATE. THE AIRCRAFT CAME TO REST INVERTED AND BETWEEN LANES OF I-10 WEST BOUND TRAFFIC. THE AIRCRAFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AND THE PRIVATE PILOT AND PASSENGER WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT AUSTIN, TEXAS ON DECEMBER 9, 2004, AT APPROXIMATELY 1115 CST.

## 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 DFW05LA033](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DFW05LA033), Dec 9, 2004: Mooney M20F (N3208F), Fabens, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: The loss of engine power as a result of the failure of a connecting rod due to oil starvation/exhaustion. A contributing factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.

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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