Mooney M20C — Santa Fe, NM

What happened

The private pilot departed on a cross-country flight which continued into night visual meteorological conditions across sparsely-populated terrain. The destination airport was located about 600 nautical miles (nm) northeast of the departure airport; however, the airplane impacted terrain almost 5 hours after takeoff near an airport about 330 nm east-northeast of the departure airport and about 120 nm east-southeast of a direct course between the departure and destination airports. The airplane's route of flight could not be determined; however, the location of the accident site suggests that the pilot had become lost at some point during the flight. Investigators were not able to determine what, if any route of flight planning was conducted by the pilot prior to the flight.

A witness near the accident site saw the airplane flying over the airport with "no lights whatsoever." His perception was that the pilot was not trying to land, but may have been trying to attract the attention of the tower controller. The landing gear and wing flaps appeared to be retracted, and the engine was running smoothly.

The airplane impacted a ravine about 1/3-mile south of the airport and was destroyed by impact forces and a postimpact fire. Postaccident airframe and engine examinations did not reveal any anomalies consistent with a preimpact failure or malfunction; however, portions of the airplane were damaged by the postimpact fire to the extent that a complete examination of some airplane systems, such as the electrical system, were not possible. The airplane did not have a current annual inspection, nor had the pilot requested a ferry permit for the flight.

Based on the available information, the reason the pilot was circling the airport and the airplane's subsequent impact with terrain could not be determined. It is likely the pilot became lost at some point during the flight and the airplane was likely near its fuel endurance limit at the time of the accident. The pilot may have been trying to orient himself by circling the airport or was attempting to alert the tower controller before setting up for a landing. However, the investigation was unable to determine whether a loss of control preceded the impact with terrain or whether the pilot became low on a landing approach.

An editorial "what led to it / how to avoid it" analysis for this accident is generated separately and will appear here.