Mooney M20F accident near Cabool, Missouri, March 4, 1999
On March 4, 1999 at about 8:15 pm local time, a Mooney M20F, registered N9381M, was destroyed in an accident near Cabool, Missouri (Cabool Memorial Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot not maintaining an appropriate airspeed during the turn from base to final resulting in a stall.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 4, 1999 · about 8:15 pm local time · cases in 1999
- Place
- Cabool, Missouri · Cabool Memorial Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20F · all M20Fs on the register
- Registration
- N9381M · registry record · serial 670005
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses observed the airplane in a left turn when it rolled into a steep right bank and descended and collided with the ground. They said the right wing, followed by the nose and left wingtip, collided with the ground before the airplane came to rest on a road embankment. The on-scene investigation revealed no anomalies with the airframe, flight control system or engine and its accessories that would prevent flight.
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
- Flight time: 260 hours in all; 177 in this make and model; 188 in the last 90 days; 84 in the last 30 days; 204 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,360 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 18, 1998; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,740 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: GPT Gulfport MS at 2:30 pm
- Destination: TVB
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 4,000 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 13 knots, gusting 26
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:55 pm from TBN, 37 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 | 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N9381M on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Mooney M-20 6,245 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Mooney 5,394 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1A 196 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Cabool Memorial · nearest airport
- Gulfport-Biloxi International · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Missouri 1,640 since 1982 · 219 in the last ten years
- Missouri 5,819 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CHI99FA101.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.