Primary finding
Probable cause
the pilot's failure to attain the proper touch down point and the excessive airspeed.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The airplane touched down at midfield on a 2,700 foot long runway at a high airspeed. The airplane exited the departure end of the runway and collided with a dirt bank. There were no reported airplane malfunctions or failures preceding the accident.
Source record
Factual narrative
On August 29, 1993, at 1420 hours Pacific daylight time, a Mooney M- 20M, N353CK, landed long, exited runway 34, and collided with a dirt bank at Eureka Municipal Airport, Eureka, California. The pilot was completing a visual flight rules personal flight. The airplane, operated by the pilot, sustained substantial damage. The certificated private pilot, the sole occupant, received serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight departed Arcata, California, at 1400 hours. A pilot/witness reported to Mr. Kim Davies, Aviation Safety Inspector (Airworthiness), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Oakland [California] Flight Standards District Office, that he was flying in the traffic pattern at the time of the accident. He observed the airplane "touch down at midfield at a high speed." The airplane exited the north end of the runway and collided with a dirt bank. He also stated that the airplane over flew the airport two or three times before the accident. The pilot reported in a telephone interview conducted on January 18, 1994, that he has no independent recollection of the accident. -