- Date
- February 14, 1988, 19:20 local (Feb 15, 1988, 01:20 UTC)
- Place
- Birmingham, AL
- Injuries
- 2 minor, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N7448VMooney M20F
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report June 7, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880214002509A
- Case key
- 7703
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The airplane collided with trees on a hill at night, while on final approach. The plt rptd that he 'evidently got too low' on the approach. The visibility was 10 miles. The hilly terrain in the vicinity of the accident site was undeveloped, and had no artificial lighting on it to provide visual cues.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7448V
- Reported as
- Mooney M20F
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 22 1225
- Airframe hours
- 1,977
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A1A, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- W. C. Cullipher & Son
- Registered owner
- W C. Cullipher And Son
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 12, 1987
- Departed
- DAB · Daytona Beach, FL
- Destination
- BHM · Dyersburg, TN
- Airport
- BHM · Birmingham, runway 18, 4,856 × 150 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 60
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 952 total · 952 in this make and model · 809 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 170° at 14 knots, gusting 26
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BHM, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.