Mooney M20C accident near Columbus, Georgia, August 17, 1985
On August 17, 1985 at about 5:33 pm local time, a Mooney M20C, registered N5844Q, was destroyed in an accident near Columbus, Georgia. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 17, 1985 · about 5:33 pm local time
- Place
- Columbus, Georgia
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20C · all M20Cs on the register
- Registration
- N5844Q · no longer on the register · serial 3131
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACFT DEPARTED AIRPORT AFTER ENROUTE STOP FOR FUELING.VFR CONDITIONS WITH BROKEN CLOUDS AT 2800 FEET AND TURBULENCE IN CLOUDS.ACFT WAS CLEARED TO 4500 AND PIC ASKED TO REPORT REACHING.DURING CLIMB PIC WAS ASKED HIS ALTITUDE.HIS RESPONSE WAS UNINTELLIGIBLE FOLLOWED BY LOSS OF RADAR CONTACT.A WITNESS DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE ADJACENT TO THE CRASH SITE WATCHED AN AIRPLANE SPIN OUT OF THE SKY AT ABOUT THE LOCATION OF THE CRASH SITE UNTIL IT DISAPPEARED BEHIND TREES.ACFT IMPACTED IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 286 hours in all; 162 in this make and model; 234 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,611 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 9, 1985; 62 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,575 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-AD (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CSG Columbus GA at 5:25 pm
- Destination: BNA Nashville TN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds; scat
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:49 pm from CSG, 7 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.