Mooney Aircraft Corp M20S accident near Farmington, New Mexico, July 10, 2004
On July 10, 2004 at about 5:13 pm local time, a Mooney Aircraft Corp M20S, registered N10059, was substantially damaged in an accident near Farmington, New Mexico (Four Corners Regional airport). It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed resulting in a stall. A contributing factor was the pilot's diverted attention.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 10, 2004 · about 5:13 pm local time
- Place
- Farmington, New Mexico · Four Corners Regional · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney Aircraft Corp M20S
- Registration
- N10059 · registry record · serial 30-0053
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was the second airplane in a flight of two and he was number two for landing. During the base leg of the traffic pattern, he became concerned about separation between his airplane the airplane landing in front of him. As the airplane in front of him started to clear the runway, the pilot noticed that he "had allowed an excessive sink rate to develop" and that his airplane had drifted to the right of the runway. The pilot elected to go around. The pilot said that during the go around, the airplane "was not able to accelerate or climb out of ground effect ..." The airplane subsequently impacted the ground, causing substantial damage to the landing gear and right wing. An examination of the airplane revealed no anomalies.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 22,000 hours in all; 17 in this make and model; 125 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 21,000 as pilot in command; 750 on instruments
- Last flight review: May 10, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 29, 2003
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-550-G6B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 5T6 Santa Teresa NM at 3:20 pm
- Destination: FMN Farmington NM
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 07, 6,704 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.20 inHg
- Observation at 5:19 pm from FMN, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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 DEN04CA102.