Mooney M20 accident near Thibodaux, Louisiana, August 6, 1984
On August 6, 1984 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Mooney M20, registered N3594H, was substantially damaged in an accident near Thibodaux, Louisiana. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 6, 1984 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Thibodaux, Louisiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20 · all M20s on the register
- Registration
- N3594H · registry record · serial 25-0428
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AT 0729 CDT THE PLT FILED A FLIGHT PLAN AND OBTAINED A WX BRIEF FORECASTING MOIST UNSTABLE AIR WITH SEVERAL SCATTERED AND BROKEN CLOUD LAYERS BEGINNING AT 1,500 FT. THE BRIEFER FURTHER ADVISED THE PLT OF THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS ALONG THE PROPOSED ROUTE OF FLIGHT. AT 0855, THE ACFT DEPARTED AND CLIMBED TO 8,000 FT. ACCORDING TO THE PLT, ABOUT 1/2 HR INTO THE FLIGHT A 'HEAVY LAYER OF CLOUDS' WERE SEEN AHEAD, AT AND BELOW HIS CRUISING ACT. A DESCENT TO 4,000 FT WAS REQUESTED AND GRANTED BY ARTCC. AT0926 THE PLT ASKED LAFAYETTE APCH CONTROL WHICH WAY THE WX WAS MOVING AND THAT THEY WERE IN SOME 'ROUGH STUFF'. FOR APRX THE NEXT 23 MIN THE ACFT REPEATEDLY ENCOUNTERED AREAS OF TURBULENCE VIOLENT ENOUGH TO CAUSE SUBSTANTIAL AIRFRAME DAMAGE AND RENDER SOME OF THE FLT INSTRUMENTS INOP. THE ACFT WAS VECTORED OUT OF THE WX AND TO AN ALTERNATE ARPT. AT 0957 A WX ADVISORY WAS ISSUED WHICH WARNED OF A LINE OF LEVEL 3 TO 5 THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE ACFT'S ROUTE. HOWEVER, THE PLT TOOK OF AT 0900 & WAS NOT AWARE OF THE ADVISORY.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 567 hours in all; 66 in this make and model; 38 in the last 90 days; 893 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 439 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-360-GB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: NEW
- Destination: SPX
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft; scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
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.