Mooney M-20K N231HT

Summary

On 20 May 1983 at about 18:20 local time, a Mooney M-20K registered N231HT, operated by Yale Grayson, was involved in an accident near Old Lyme, Connecticut, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

20 May 1983 at 18:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Old Lyme, Connecticut, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Mooney M-20K

Registration

N231HT

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Yale Grayson

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Mattituck → Lebanon

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC83FA121

1 person died.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND IN IMC AFTER THE PLT REPORTED HE LOST HIS VACUUM INSTRUMENTS. THE FLT ORIGINATED AT MATTITUCK, NY WITH A DESTINATION OF LEBANON, NH. AFTER DEPARTURE THE PLT WAS CLEARED TO CLIMB TO 7000 FT. THE INSTRUMENTRATED PILOT WAS ON AN IFR FLT PLAN. ABOUT 8 MINUTES AFTER DEPARTURE THE PILOT RADIOED THAT HE HAD EXPERIENCED A LOSS OF VACUUM AND HIS ARTIFICIAL HORIZON WAS INOPERATIVE. HE ALSO STATED HE HAD NO AUTOPILOT AND REQUESTED RADAR VECTORING. HE WAS GIVEN A HEADING OF 050 FOR RADAR VECTORING TO NORWICH VOR. ABOUT 2 MINUTES LATER THE PILOT RADIOED HE WAS 'IN TROUBLE AND IN A DIVE.' ONE MIN LATER HE RADIOED 'ONE THOUSAND FT I AM IN DEEP TROUBLE HERE.' THIS WAS THE LAST RADIO CALL FROM THE PLT. WITNESSES IN THE AREA HEARD & SAW THE ACFT COME OUT OF THE CLOUDS AT 200-300 FT & THEN CLIMB BACK INTO THE FOG BANK. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, A 'WHISTLING DIVE' WAS HEARD FOLLOWED BY THE SOUND OF A CRASH. THE WX IN THAT AREA WAS DESCRIBED AS FOG, LIGHT RAIN, & OVERCAST. EXAM OF THE ACFT WRECKAGE REVEALED THAT THE VACUUM PUMP FAILED.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.