- Date
- May 3, 1986, 11:55 local (18:55 UTC)
- Place
- Morgan Hill, CA
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N9309VMooney M20F
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19860503015479A
- Case key
- 24910
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 pilot requested and received preflight weather briefings, twice, and was advised that VFR flight was not recommended. The flight departed and crashed into mountainous terrain that was obscured by adverse weather conditions. Witnesses reported that the acft had circled several times in a valley or canyon area before it disappeared into clouds and impacted the side of a mountain. They reported that when the accident occurred, there were low ceilings, poor visibility with fog and heavy rain.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9309V
- Reported as
- Mooney M20F
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 690087
- Airframe hours
- 1,231
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A1A, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- J. M. Grimes, doing business as Grimes Aviation
- Registered owner
- Horace G. Cinnamon
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 13, 1985 · 23 hours before
- Departed
- 056 · Novato, CA
- Destination
- SVC · Silver City, NM
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
- 71
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Right
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 24,000 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 61 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SJC, 24 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.