Mooney M20C accident near Somerset, Massachusetts, January 13, 2001
On January 13, 2001 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Mooney M20C, registered N1398W, was substantially damaged in an accident near Somerset, Massachusetts. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate visual lookout. A factor was the dusk lighting conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 13, 2001 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Somerset, Massachusetts · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Mooney M20C · all M20Cs on the register
- Registration
- N1398W · no longer on the register · serial 2626
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
About 8 minutes before sunset, during a low level, northbound flight along a river, the airplane struck high tension cables. Upon cable impact, the airplane lost the vertical stabilizer and rudder, and the pilot was forced to land in the river. After touchdown, the airplane skidded into rocks along the shoreline.
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
- Flight time: 760 hours in all; 760 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: March 28, 1999
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,216 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 15, 1997; 311 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,575 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: UUU Newport RI at 9:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 180° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 34°F (1°C), dew point 21°F (-6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.29 inHg
- Observation at 9:52 pm from TAN, 10 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.