Mooney M20E accident near Arcadia, Florida, August 8, 1986
On August 8, 1986, a Mooney M20E, registered N1996Y, was substantially damaged in an accident near Arcadia, Florida. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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 8, 1986
- Place
- Arcadia, Florida
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20E · all M20Es on the register
- Registration
- N1996Y · no longer on the register · serial 283
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING CRUISE, THE PLT ATTEMPTED TO SWITCH FUEL TANKS AND THE FUEL SELECTOR VALVE BECAME STUCK IN THE 'OFF' POSITION. A SUCCESSFUL GEAR-UP FORCED LDG WAS MADE IN A FIELD. AN EXAM OF THE VALVE CONFIRMED THAT IT WAS STUCK DUE TO CORROSION AND RUST, THE OPERATOR'S MECHANIC STATED THAT PRIOR TO THEIR RECENT ACQUISITION OF THE ACFT, IT HAD REMAINED INACTIVE AND OUTDOORS FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. DURING THE RECENT ANNUAL INSP, HE STATED THAT THE FUEL CAP SEALS HAD DETERIORATED AND HAD TO BE REPLACED AND THAT WATER HAD BEEN FOUND IN THE FUEL TANKS.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,580 hours in all; 4 in this make and model; 180 in the last 90 days; 68 in the last 30 days; 1,351 as pilot in command; 550 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,865 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, July 17, 1986; 8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,575 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FXE Ft.Lauderdale FL at 11:20 pm
- Destination: TPA Tampa FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 10,000 ft; scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 pm from FMY, 48 miles away
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.