Mooney M20R accident near New Port Richey, Florida, June 9, 2025
On June 9, 2025 at about 10:00 am local time, a 1995 Mooney M20R, registered N9166Z, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR go-around) near New Port Richey, Florida (Hidden Lake 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 pilot's mismanagement of the available fuel, which resulted in fuel starvation and a total loss of engine power.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 9, 2025 · about 10:00 am local time
- Place
- New Port Richey, Florida · Hidden Lake · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20R, built 1995 · all M20Rs on the register
- Registration
- N9166Z · registry record · serial 29-0035
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During the landing flare, the airplane floated down the runway without touching down. The pilot felt uncomfortable attempting to land on the remaining runway, so he executed a go-around by adding full power and setting the flaps for climb. About 50 ft above the runway the engine stopped producing power. The airplane was too low for the pilot to fully troubleshoot, so he switched fuel tanks, but that did not restore power. The airplane descended into the runway overrun area and impacted brush and muddy terrain before coming to rest upright. The resulting impact resulted in substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. The fuel tanks remained intact. Postaccident engine examination and an engine test run detected no anomalies of the fuel injected engine. The fuel tanks were then drained revealing about 2.5 gallons of fuel in the left tank and 13 gallons in the right tank. Each tank held 3 gallons of unusable fuel. The pilot reported that he should have had at least 17 gallons of fuel remaining in the tanks at the time of the accident, based on his estimate of the airplane’s fuel consumption and the airplane’s most recent fueling that occurred 8 days before the accident. This estimate was roughly consistent with the total quantity of about 16 gallons that were found during the postaccident examination. Based on the distribution of fuel found in the tanks after the accident, the pilot was likely operating on the left fuel tank and, during the go around, the engine was starved of fuel, which resulted in the loss of engine power. When the pilot switched tanks, the airplane was at too low an altitude to successfully restore power before it impacted the terrain.
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
- Fuel starvation during approach (VFR go-around) defining event
- Off-field or emergency landing during approach (VFR go-around)
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Fluids › Fuel › Fluid management
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Identification/recognition › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,379 hours in all; 2,354 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: July 24, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,782 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 17, 2024; 173 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-550-G (piston); 2,000 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: INF Inverness FL at 9:45 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 05/2, 4,425 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 29.99 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 am from BKV, 15 miles away
Weather report (METAR): METAR KBKV 090953Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 22/22 A2999 RMK AO2 SLP154 T02170217=
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
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 docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site 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 ERA25LA273.