Mooney M20F accident near Leesburg, Florida, March 16, 2013
On March 16, 2013 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Mooney M20F, registered N9387V, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Leesburg, Florida (Leesburg International 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The incorrect rigging of the landing gear emergency extension system by unknown maintenance personnel, which resulted in a failure of the emergency extension cable, and jamming of the normal extension gear motor.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 16, 2013 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Leesburg, Florida · Leesburg International Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20F · all M20Fs on the register
- Registration
- N9387V · registry record · serial 700018
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that when he attempted to extend the landing gear, he heard a "snap," and the landing gear did not extend. He then cycled the landing gear and attempted the emergency (manual) landing gear extension procedure with no success. The pilot subsequently performed a gear-up landing to a grassy area at an airport. Examination of the airplane revealed that the emergency gear extension cable terminated with a spline drive at the landing gear actuator. The emergency cable was separated from the spline drive, which was seized. The emergency gear extension cable was also misrigged, which allowed it to contact the landing gear actuator arm and engage the cable during normal gear operations. Subsequently, with a seized spline engaged to the electric landing gear motor via the actuator, during normal gear operations, the electric landing gear motor would not be able to overcome the seized spline to actuate the landing gear. The airplane had been operated about 60 hours since its most recent annual inspection, which was completed about 10 months before the accident. Review of the airplane's most recent airframe logbook (dating back 7 years) revealed that the landing gear actuator was removed and replaced about 4 years before the accident. During reinstallation of the actuator, an emergency (manual) gear extension was successfully completed. There were no other entries pertaining to emergency (manual) gear extension in the airframe logbook; however, the entry for the most recent 100 hour inspection noted three landing gear retraction cycles. The mechanic that recorded that entry stated it was a standard entry and typically more than three cycles are completed with the first one being the emergency (manual) extension. While it was likely that a mechanic checked the rigging of the emergency gear extension cable following the actuator replacement, the investigation was unable to determine if the rigging of the emergency gear extension cable was affected by any subsequent maintenance. Additionally, the cable routing and rigging wouldn't typically be inspected if the landing gear manual extension was successfully accomplished during the 100-hour or annual inspections.
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
What happened, in order
- Aircraft maintenance event during prior to flight
- Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power) during maneuvering defining event
- Landing gear not configured during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Gear extension and retract sys › Incorrect service/maintenance
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Maintenance › (general) › Maintenance personnel
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Gear extension and retract sys › Malfunction
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 17,000 hours in all; 50 in this make and model; 90 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 16,800 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 6, 2012
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,498 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 24, 2012; 59 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: LEE Leesburg FL at 2:30 pm
- Destination: LEE Leesburg FL
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 5 knots
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.19 inHg
- Observation at 3:34 pm from LEE
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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 ERA13LA175.