CEN16LA200

The private-rated pilot was taking off in the airplane when the airplane's engine began to sputter and lose power. He elected to reduce engine power and land on the remaining runway; however, he had already retracted the landing gear. The pilot lowered the landing gear handle, but was not able to lock the gear into place before the airplane impacted the runway and the nose gear collapsed. Postaccident examination of the airplane found water in the left and right wing fuel tanks, as well as the engine's carburetor. It is likely that the loss of engine power was a result of the water contamination of the fuel system.

On May 13, 2016, about 0930 central daylight time, a Mooney M20F airplane, N6371Q, conducted a forced landing while departing the North Little Rock Municipal airport (KORK), near Little Rock, Arkansas. The private rated pilot and passenger were not injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged during the accident. The airplane was registered to and operated by Barefoot Aviation LLC, Little Rock, Arkansas, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot reported to the responding Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, that after takeoff, about the time he retracted the landing gear, the engine started to "sputter". The pilot lowered the landing gear and tried to land and stop on the remaining runway. However, the airplane landed hard on the nose gear and the nose gear collapsed. The airplane came to rest just off the end of the runway. The airplane sustained damage to the nose of airplane, including substantial damage to the firewall. The airplane was moved back to the owner's hangar, and remained there, until the insurance company sold the wreckage. The new owner recovered the airplane and had the airplane transferred to a maintenance facility. Personnel at the maintenance facility reported that during recovery of the airplane, water was found in the left and right fuel tanks. Additionally, water was found in the engine's carburetor.