Mooney M20J accident near Duluth, Minnesota, June 20, 1982
On June 20, 1982 at about 4:59 am local time, a Mooney M20J, registered N201EC, was destroyed in an accident near Duluth, Minnesota. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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
- June 20, 1982 · about 4:59 am local time
- Place
- Duluth, Minnesota
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20J · all M20Js on the register
- Registration
- N201EC · registry record · serial 24-0111
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
PLT WX BRIEFED AT 2148 BY KENORA FSS, ONTARIO, CANADA. AREA & TERMINAL FORECASTS INDICATED VFR CONDS TO EXIST AT DULUTH.SUBSEQUENTLY, AT 2151, DULUTH ARPT NOTAMED CLOSED, ALL RWY & APPROACH LITES OUT. THE ILS RWY 9 G/S LATER WENT OUT OF SERVICE, BUT NOT NOTAMED SINCE ARPT ALREADY NOTAMED CLOSED. PLT LANDED AT INT'L FALLS TO CLEAR CUSTOMS. NO RECORD OF TELCON TO HIBBINGS FSS FOR WX UPDATE. DEPARTED INT'L FALLS & ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT HIBBINGS FSS BY RADIO AT 2305 BUT NO RADIO CONTACT ESTABLISHED. THERE WERE NO FURTHER RADIO CONTACTS WITH FSS. 30 MI FROM DULUTH PLT UNABLE TO RECEIVE DULUTHATIS. PLY UNAWARE OF DETERIORATED WX CONDITIONS & ILS RWY 9 G/S NOT OPERATING. ACFT CRASHED 500 FT NW OF ILS RWY 9 MM. ATIS WAS RECORDED AT 1942, TOWER CLOSED AT 2000. ATIS BROADCASTED CONTINUOUSLY THROUGHOUT NIGHT WITH 1942 INORMATION & WITH NO UPDATE OF ARPT BEING CLOSED & REOPENED, NAVAIDS BEING DOWN & UP, OR SIGNIFICANT WX CHANGES.
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: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,545 hours in all; 901 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 1,440 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,290 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 78 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,740 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A3B6D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Kenwood Park Corporation
The flight
- Departed from: International F MN at 10:55 pm
- Destination: DLH Duluth MN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 10,154 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 090° at 7 knots
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 122°F (50°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 pm from DLH, 2 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.