Mooney M20C accident near Warroad, Minnesota, August 25, 2002
On August 25, 2002 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Mooney M20C, registered N9274V, was substantially damaged in an accident near Warroad, Minnesota (Northwest Angle Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The loss of engine power due to the failure of the muffler baffles which blocked the exhaust system. A factor to the accident was the treeline.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 25, 2002 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Warroad, Minnesota · Northwest Angle Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20C · all M20Cs on the register
- Registration
- N9274V · registry record · serial 690075
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During initial climb after takeoff the aircraft experienced a loss of engine power and the pilot performed a forced landing into trees. The pilot reported the airplane "lifted off at between 75 and 78 mph and everything was normal. At 25 to 30 feet in the air I began to experience backfiring and loss of power. Then the power resumed momentarily and the engine caught again lifting us above the trees. Then the engine started backfiring severely with [a] loss of power. As we began settling into the trees I shut off the master switch and chose a tree to hit with one wing in order to break our forward motion and to slow the aircraft. The aircraft spun around doing a 180 degree turn settling into the trees." The pilot stated that he "saw a small amount of smoke coming from the [cowling]" after he exited the airplane. Inspection of the engine compartment revealed fire damage to the air filter assembly, air intake ducting, and rubberized engine compartment baffling. All muffler baffles were either burned or missing.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Last flight review: June 6, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 2002
- Maximum gross weight: 2,575 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 58MN Warroad MN at 7:30 pm
- Destination: UNK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 2,380 ft by 105 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:55 pm from RRT, 27 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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 CHI02LA261.