Mooney M20TN incident near Kerrville, Texas, September 8, 2007
On September 8, 2007 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Mooney M20TN, registered N353TW, suffered minor damage in an incident near Kerrville, Texas (Kerrville Muni/Louis Schreiner airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The incorrect wire labeling, resulting in the trim controls operating in the opposite direction of the pilot's input.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 8, 2007 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Kerrville, Texas · Kerrville Muni/Louis Schreiner · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20TN · all M20TNs on the register
- Registration
- N353TW · no longer on the register · serial 31-0028
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that during the approach and landing, the nose of the airplane "was very heavy", and he was unable to keep the nose landing gear from striking the runway. An inspection of the airplane revealed that the elevator (pitch) trim control was reversed. The 2007 model airplane had a provision for the installation of an aftermarket electric trim option. This meant that the airplane was delivered to the customer without an operating electric trim system in order that the airplane could be retrofitted at a later date. Prior to its departure from the previous airport, the airplane's manual electric trim was enabled in accordance with the appropriate manufactures service bulletin. A subsequent inspection by the airplane manufacturer revealed that the wires connecting the yoke's trim control switch were incorrectly labeled. Therefore, incorporating the trim system service bulletin would reverse the direction of the pitch trim control from the pilot's input.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,000 hours in all; 600 in this make and model; 90 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,050 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: February 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-550 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CAE Columbia SC at 4:46 pm
- Destination: ERV Kerrville TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 12, 6,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,100 ft; clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 10:07 pm from KERV, 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.
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.