Mooney M-20D accident near Lindenwood, Illinois, January 5, 1983
On January 5, 1983 at about 9:49 am local time, a Mooney M-20D, registered N1968Y, was destroyed in an accident near Lindenwood, Illinois. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 3 people were killed. 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
- January 5, 1983 · about 9:49 am local time
- Place
- Lindenwood, Illinois
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 3 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M-20D · all M-20Ds on the register
- Registration
- N1968Y · no longer on the register · serial 233
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 0306 THE PLT CONTACTED ROCKFORD FSS REQUESTING LOCAL WX. HE THEN REQUESTED AN ILS APCH TO ROCKFORD & STATED HE HAD NOAPPROACH PLATES. AFTER BEING CLEARED FOR AN ILS APCH TO RWY 36, THE PLT REPORTED HE WAS UNABLE TO PICK UP THE ILS & WAS LOW ON FUEL. ARTCC THEN ATTEMPTED TO SET THE ACFT UP FOR A VOR APCH. AT 0346 THE PLT REPORTED HE WAS OUT OF FUEL. THE ACFT CRASHED IN A NEAR VERTICAL ANGLE ABOUT 7 MI SSE OF THE ARPT. ABOUT 1/4 INCH OF ICE WAS FOUND ON THE LEADING EDGES OF BOTH STABILIZERS.
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; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,500 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,542 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 29, 1982; 54 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,575 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: COS Colorado Spring CO at 4:00 am
- Destination: Rockford IL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 4 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 400 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:51 am from RFD, 7 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.