Mooney M-20R accident near Eden Prairie, Minnesota, July 19, 2001
On July 19, 2001 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Mooney M-20R, registered N2HW, was destroyed in an accident near Eden Prairie, Minnesota (Flying Cloud Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The fractured camshaft gear and the pilot not maintaining aircraft control. Factors relating to this accident were metal fatigue in the camshaft gear teeth, the inadvertent stall, the low airspeed, and the trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 19, 2001 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Eden Prairie, Minnesota · Flying Cloud Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M-20R · all M-20Rs on the register
- Registration
- N2HW · no longer on the register · serial 29-0099
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was observed proceeding westbound from the airport at a low altitude. A witness said, "I watched and listened thinking he would soon apply power and climb. The engine noise was smooth sounding but low. The plane was not gaining altitude and slowly losing altitude." The witness said the airplane flew parallel to, and north of the road in front of her house. "As it crossed the point of my driveway, the plane banked slightly, hit the tree tops and crashed and exploded." Control tower communications revealed that shortly after being instructed to contact departure control, the pilot responded, "two hotel whiskey - engine failure". An examination of airframe records showed that a new engine was installed at the annual inspection on February 5, 2001. The airplane logged approximately 75.7 hours from the time of the annual inspection to the time of the accident. An examination of the airplane's engine revealed that three teeth from the camshaft gear were fractured. An additional eight teeth were crushed, in total rendering the camshaft unable to be driven. A Materials Laboratory examination of the camshaft gear and fractured gear teeth showed two of the three teeth indicating signs of fatigue. The third tooth showed evidence of overstress. Rockwell hardness measurements made on the gear portion of the camshaft gear showed an average hardness of Rockwell 64HR30-N. Specification drawings for the camshaft gear indicated that the gear teeth should be hardened by gas-nitride process to a hardness of Rockwell 69HR30-N, minimum.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 632 hours in all; 382 in this make and model; 13 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 487 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 4, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 340 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 5, 2001; 76 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,368 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-550-G(6) (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: FCM Eden Prairie MN at 10:30 pm
- Destination: ABR Aberdeen SD
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 27L, 3,909 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.90 inHg
- Observation at 10:44 pm from FCM, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.