Mooney M20E accident near Angel Fire, New Mexico, February 5, 1998
On February 5, 1998 at about 11:29 pm local time, a Mooney M20E, registered N9213M, was destroyed in an accident near Angel Fire, New Mexico. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot attempting VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions and his lack of an instrument rating. Factors were weather conditions that included mountain wave activity conducive to turbulence, and clouds obscuring the mountainous terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 5, 1998 · about 11:29 pm local time
- Place
- Angel Fire, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20E · all M20Es on the register
- Registration
- N9213M · no longer on the register · serial 1176
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane disappeared on a flight from Santa Fe to Angel Fire, New Mexico. The pilot did not obtain a weather briefing nor file a flight plan. The wreckage was located three days later in mountainous terrain at the 10,700 foot level. A witness told SAR personnel he had seen a low wing airplane 'flying in and out of the cloud bottoms' in the vicinity and at about the time of the accident. A meteorological study indicated moderate to severe turbulence associated with mountain wave activity, and marginal VFR conditions in the mountains. Radar data indicated that minutes before the accident, the airplane's altitude varied between 11,700 and 13,100 feet, ground speed reached a low of 64 knots and a high of 270 knots, and vertical speed varied between +4,800 and -6,000 feet per minute (+80 and -100 feet per second). At one point, the airplane made a complete 360 degree circle.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,730 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 11, 1997; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,575 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming 10-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SAF Santa Fe NM at 10:58 pm
- Destination: AXX Angel Fire NM
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.