NTSB CHI92LA259 — 1992-08-29 · LACON, Illinois, United States

Current FAA registration · N3486N

Make / Model: MOONEY M20F
Year of manufacture: 1967 · 25 years old at event
Engine: LYCOMING I0360 SER (180 hp)
Seats / Engines: 4 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 19671103
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S A3DE3D

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N3486N Mooney 20F None

Probable cause & findings

THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO RECOGNIZE THAT THE RUNWAY HE SELECTED FOR LANDING WAS CLOSED. FACTORS WHICH CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT WERE: THE PILOT'S ANXIETY FOLLOWING THE NEAR-COLLISION, AND HIS LIMITED ABILITY TO DETECT THE ORANGE-COLORED MARKING.

Factual narrative

AS THE PILOT NEARED THE AIRPORT FOR LANDING, HE MANEUVERED ABRUPTLY TO AVOID COLLIDING WITH A DEPARTING AIRPLANE. HE THEN EXECUTED AN APPROACH TO THAT RUNWAY BENEATH HIS WING. ON FINAL, HE OBSERVED THE RUNWAY TO BE BLACKTOP WITH NO MARKINGS. IN THE FLARE, HE OBSERVED THE RUNWAY DID NOT APPEAR TO BE FINISHED. THE AIRPLANE TOUCHED DOWN SHORT OF THE RUNWAY UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN A SOIL AREA RIPPING OFF THE GEAR. THE PILOT STATED HE HAD CHECKED THE NOTAMS AND WAS AWARE THAT THE N-S RUNWAY WAS CLOSED FOR CONSTRUCTION. HE INDICATED THAT THE EARLIER NEAR-COLLISION HAD STARTLED HIM AND HE LANDED ON THE FIRST RUNWAY HE HAD IN SIGHT. IN ADDITION, THE CLOSED RUNWAY WAS MARKED BY A CROSS ON THE SOIL 50 FT BEYOND EACH END USING PERFORATED ORANGE PLASTIC COMMONLY USED FOR CONSTRUCTION BARRIERS. THE PILOT HAD A MEDICAL WAIVER FOR PARTIAL COLOR-BLINDNESS TO RED AND GREEN. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1992_CHI92LA259.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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