Mooney M20M accident near Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, January 10, 2000
On January 10, 2000, a Mooney M20M, registered N2135X, was destroyed in an accident near Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. 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's failure to maintain airspeed (VSO) while maneuv ering on a night instrument approach in instrument conditions. This resulted in an inadvertent in-flight loss of control (stall/spin), and subsequent in-flight collision with a swamp. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's impairment due to marihuana.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 10, 2000
- Place
- Mount Pleasant, South Carolina · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20M · all M20Ms on the register
- Registration
- N2135X · no longer on the register · serial 27-0237
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was cleared for a night instrument approach in instrument conditions. A witness who was waiting for the pilot at the airport heard the airplane fly over the airport flying towards a residential area, but could not see the airplane due to fog. Witnesses in the residential area observed the airplane descend out of the fog, pull up about 40-degrees, and reenter the fog in a steep left bank with slow airspeed. The airplane was observed descending out of the fog in a 70-degree left bank. An increase in engine power was heard, the airplane disappeared from view and was heard to impact water and a marshy area. Examination of the airframe, flight controls, engine assembly and accessories revealed no evidence of a precrash mechanical failure or malfunction. Toxicology results revealed the pilot was impaired due to drugs.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 537 hours in all; 316 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 528 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 27, 1999
- Maximum gross weight: 3,368 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540-AF1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MYR Myrtle Beach SC at 11:16 pm
- Destination: 8S5
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 190° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 300 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.