- Date
- October 7, 2025, 13:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Watsonville, CA · On Airport
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N6814NMooney M20C
- Defining event
- Taxi: Ground collision
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 20, 2025
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FAA
- Case key
- 201812
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s decision to program avionics during taxi, resulting in an inadvertent throttle input and collision with a hangar.
Findings · 4
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot of the airplane reported that while taxiing for departure he reached over to enter navigation information into the GPS, which was mounted on the right-side control yoke. While moving his hand back to the left side yoke, he inadvertently advanced the throttle forward. Subsequently, the airplane accelerated forward and impacted a hangar, which resulted in substantial damage to the engine mount. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6814N
- Reported as
- Mooney M20C
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 680111
- Built
- 1968
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1D, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Destination
- SBP · San Luis Obispo, CA
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- WVI · Watsonville Muni
- Equipment
- ADS-B, Auto-pilot, Handheld GPS, Stall warning system
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
- 78
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 25, 2025
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 638 total · 56 in this make and model · 587 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 230° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.89 inHg
- Observed at
- KWVI
- METAR
- METAR KWVI 071853Z AUTO 23006KT 10SM CLR 19/13 A2989 RMK AO2 SLP120 T01940133=
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 20, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.2 MB in all.