Monday, August 01, 2011

Mooney M20K, N231EH: Accident occurred July 30, 2011 in Opelousas, Louisiana

NTSB Identification: CEN11LA529 
 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, July 30, 2011 in Opelousas, LA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 12/27/2011
Aircraft: MOONEY AIRCRAFT CORP. M20K, registration: N231EH
Injuries: 1 Minor.


According to the pilot, immediately after retracting the landing gear during the takeoff climb, the engine began running rough. He performed a forced landing to a field, during which the airplane collided with trees. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no fuel in the fuel pump, and water was found inside the fuel manifold bowl. The water was brown in color, did not smell like aviation fuel, and left a brown stain when it evaporated.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The loss of engine power due to fuel contamination.




Opelousas, LA - A Tulsa man was treated for injuries suffered after his single-engine plane crashed in southern Louisiana.

The crash happened Saturday at about 11 a.m. The pilot, identified as 52-year-old Arnold Reed Johnstone of Tulsa, was taking off from St. Landry Parish Airport when the plane apparently lost power.

Johnstone, a retired commercial pilot, was taken to Opelousas General Health System and treated for mild to moderate injuries before being released later in the day.

Johnstone was the only one aboard the aircraft.

FAA investigators are now trying to determine what caused the plane to crash.


OPELOUSAS, La. (AP) - Federal investigators are working to determine what caused a small plane to crash over the weekend shortly after takeoff from the St. Landry Parish Airport in Opelousas.

The Federal Aviation Administration was notified after the single-engine plane crashed about 11 a.m. Saturday.

The pilot, 52-year-old Arnold Reed Johnstone, of Tulsa, Okla., was treated at Opelousas General Health System for mild to moderate injuries and released Saturday afternoon. Det. Darren Zachary of the Opelousas Police Department says Johnstone, a retired commercial pilot, was the only occupant in the four-passenger plane.

St. Landry Parish Director of Administration Jessie Bellard told The Daily World that the crash happened after the plane appeared to lose power.

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