Mooney M20E accident near West Branch, Iowa, September 2, 2026
On September 2, 2026 at about 10:17 pm local time, a Mooney M20E, registered N55GA, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute near West Branch, Iowa. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 2, 2026 · about 10:17 pm local time
- Place
- West Branch, Iowa · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- not recorded
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20E · all M20Es on the register
- Registration
- N55GA · registry record · serial 541
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Fuel exhaustion during enroute defining event
The aircraft
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Operator: 52 Whiskey LLC
Weather at the time
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Weather report (METAR): KDSM 022054Z 20012G17KT 10SM FEW110 FEW150 FEW250 35/21 A2988 RMK AO2 LTG DSNT N SLP107
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CEN26LA309.