LAX87FA066

1986-12-20 · FLAGSTAFF, Arizona, United States · Fatal · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport FLG

Aircraft involved

N4004H Mooney M20K Fatal

Factual narrative

THE PILOT ENCOUNTERED CLOUDS AND TEMPERATURES BELOW FREEZING DURING A CROSS COUNTRY FLIGHT AT 17,500 FEET ABOVE MEAN SEA LEVEL. THE ENGINE FAILED SHORTLY AFTER THE ENCOUNTER WITH THE WEATHER. THE PILOT WAS UNABLE TO RESTART THE ENGINE DURING THE FORCED LANDING DESCENT AND COLLIDED WITH THE TERRAIN AT AN ELEVATION OF 6110 FEET MSL. AN EXAMINATION OF THE ENGINE ENDUCTION SYSTEM REVEALED A COATING OF GLOBULAR ICE FORMATION AND CRYSTALS ON THE INDUCTION AIR FILTER. THE ALTERNATE AIR DOOR WAS CLOSED AND THE ALTERNATE AIR CONTROL WAS IN THE FILTERED POSITION. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_1986_LAX87FA066.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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