Mooney M20B accident near Bethpage, Tennessee, October 17, 1993
On October 17, 1993 at about 4:30 pm local time, a Mooney M20B, registered N74724, was destroyed in an accident near Bethpage, Tennessee. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S VFR FLIGHT INTO IMC, AND HIS FAILURE TO MAINTAIN AIRCRAFT CONTROL. FACTORS WERE THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO USE A PREFLIGHT BRIEFING SERVICE, AND THE LOW CEILINGS AND FOG AT THE ACCIDENT SITE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 17, 1993 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Bethpage, Tennessee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20B · all M20Bs on the register
- Registration
- N74724 · no longer on the register · serial 1724
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PRIVATE, NON-INSTRUMENT RATED PILOT WAS ON A CROSS COUNTRY FLIGHT. IT WAS REPORTED THAT LOW CEILINGS AND FOG COVERED THE CRASH SITE AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. BASED ON WITNESS REPORTS, THE AIRCRAFT FLEW OVERHEAD AT LOW ALTITUDE, THEN RETURNED A SHORT TIME LATER. THE ENGINE SOUND WAS INDICATIVE OF HIGH RPM, FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY THE SOUND OF A CRASH. THE WRECKAGE WAS FOUND IN A PASTURE WHICH WAS BORDERED BY TREES. IMPACT DAMAGE WAS INDICATIVE OF A STEEP (APPROXIMATELY 56 DEGREES), NOSE LOW COLLISION WITH TREES AND TERRAIN. NO EVIDENCE OF A MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE WAS FOUND DURING THE WRECKAGE EXAMINATION. A SEARCH OF FLIGHT SERVICE STATION RECORDS REVEALED THAT THE PILOT DID NOT RECEIVE A WEATHER BRIEFING PRIOR TO THE FLIGHT, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED.
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: 309 hours in all; 102 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,930 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 3, 1992; 91 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,450 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: I14 Indianapolis IN at 2:20 pm
- Destination: RMG Rome GA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 1,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:20 pm from M33, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
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.