- Date
- April 30, 1987, 08:28 local (15:28 UTC)
- Place
- Long Beach, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N231MWMooney M20K
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 7, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19870430013169A
- Case key
- 25399
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
On 4/28/87, after a flt from Long Beach to las vegas, the plt requested the left wing tank be svcd with 15 gal of fuel; no fuel was added to the rgt tank. Two days later, the plt took off on the return flt. Drg arrival at Long Beach, he was vectored for an ILS rwy 30 apch. While on final apch to land, the eng lost power. The plt initiated emerg starting procedures, then directed his attention to making an emerg landing. Drg the landing, the acft struck a hiway ramp sign &light standard, then crashed on the roof of a large bldg. An investigation revealed the fuel selector was positioned to the left tank which was nearly empty, but the right tank had aprx 15 gal remaining. Although the left tank had ruptured,only about 1.5 gal was found in the tank & only an estimated 1.5 gal of fuel had spilled. Less than 3 cc of fuel (total)was fnd in the fuel feed & return lines to the eng driven fuel pump. Four gal of fuel in each tank was considered to be unusable. The plt operating handbook directed that for landing, the fuel selector be positioned to the fullest tank.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N231MW
- Reported as
- Mooney M20K
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 25-0200
- Airframe hours
- 1,303
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-360-GB, 210 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Michael T. Bianchi
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 1, 1986 · 60 hours before
- Departed
- LAS · Las Vegas, NV
- Destination
- LGB
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- LGB · Long Beach, runway 30, 10,000 × 200 ft, concrete
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
- 39
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 690 total · 321 in this make and model · 638 as pilot in command · 6 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- LGB, 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.
Other investigations on N231MW · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.