Mooney M20K N57535

Summary

On 10 May 2016 at about 19:00 local time, a Mooney M20K registered N57535 was involved in an accident near Akron, Ohio, United States. 3 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 May 2016 at 19:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Akron, Ohio, United States

Nearest airport

Akron-Canton Rgnl (CAK)

Coordinates

40.9150, -81.4436

Aircraft

Mooney M20K

Registration

N57535

Category

Airplane

Year built

1984

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Akron → Akron

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN16LA178

Nobody was injured.

A missing bolt in the nose landing gear assembly, which resulted in the airplane suddenly turning left and the pilot's inability to maintain directional control during a crosswind takeoff.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that, during the takeoff roll, the airplane veered to the left and he then reduced engine power and applied full right rudder to correct. The airplane exited the runway and struck airport lighting, resulting in substantial damage. The pilot indicated a crosswind of about nine knots was reported about the time of the takeoff. Postaccident examination of the nose landing gear assembly revealed that the bolt that attached the nose landing gear retraction link to the nose gear truss assembly was missing. The bolt holes were intact and not deformed, consistent with the bolt exiting the holes because the nut was no longer retaining the bolt, rather than the bolt shearing in place. According to the manufacturer, it was possible that without the bolt, the nose wheel could be allowed to turn suddenly, and that the pilot's steering inputs would be ineffective. The investigation could not determine where or when the bolt was liberated from the nose landing gear.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.