- Date
- August 3, 1988, 15:30 local (22:30 UTC)
- Place
- Visalia, CA
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N9273MMooney M20E
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 7, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880803067969A
- Case key
- 26073
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 removed the vacuum pump from the engine prior to the flight because of an internal failure in the pump. The pilot did not install a cover plate on the accessory mounting hole vacated by the pump. After takeoff on the local flight, the pilot noticed the oil pressure was dropping and the temperature was rising. He elected to return to the airport. The engine siezed and the pilot made a forced landing in a cotton field.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9273M
- Reported as
- Mooney M20E
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1212
- Airframe hours
- 1,629
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A1A, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Stanford, William L.
- Registered owner
- Itzaco, Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 16, 1987 · 35 hours before
- Departed
- VIS
- Destination
- VIS
- Airport
- VIS
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
- 55
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 531 total · 466 in this make and model · 500 as pilot in command · 16 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
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 N9273M · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.