Mooney M20J accident near Englewood, Colorado, October 14, 2002
On October 14, 2002 at about 9:20 pm local time, a Mooney M20J, registered N8084D, was substantially damaged in an accident near Englewood, Colorado (Centennial 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).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the complete collapse of the landing gear, during landing roll, for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 14, 2002 · about 9:20 pm local time
- Place
- Englewood, Colorado · Centennial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20J · all M20Js on the register
- Registration
- N8084D · no longer on the register · serial 24-0894
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said that when he put the landing gear down, everything "sounded and felt normal," but he had an unsafe gear indication. He made a pass over the airport, and tower personnel indicated that all three landing gear appeared to be down and locked. The pilot requested that a Mooney mechanic also confirm the position of the gear. After working with a mechanic to manually lock the gear into place, the mechanic stated that the gear did appear to be down and locked, and that most often the problem was with the indicator rather than the gear itself. Although the unsafe light was still illuminated, the pilot decided to land. During the landing roll, the gear collapsed and the airplane exited the south side of runway 28 into the dirt. According to the pilot's accident report, the reason for the collapse of the landing gear had not been determined.
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: 575 hours in all; 530 in this make and model; 62 in the last 90 days; 36 in the last 30 days; 480 as pilot in command; 123 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 24, 2002
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,969 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 9, 2002; 168 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,740 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO 360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MTJ Montrose CO at 7:30 pm
- Destination: APA Englewood CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 28, 4,904 ft by 62 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 17,000 ft
- Temperature: 59°F (15°C), dew point 12°F (-11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.17 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from APA
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.
Other NTSB records under N8084D the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.