RIO LINDA, CA, USA
N3229F
Mooney M20E
The pilot stated that the winds were calm when he crossed the threshold 'a little high and 10 knots fast' on the 2,620-foot-long runway 17. The pilot said, 'I was able to get the wheels on the ground before midfield, but I bounced the airplane and had a very hard time getting it back on the runway.' The pilot was unable to stop the aircraft prior to running off the departure end about 5 mph. The aircraft traveled about 15 feet into an area of tall dried grass. As the pilot shut down the engine he noticed a fire behind the aircraft's wing and evacuated the aircraft. By the time the pilot could get to a phone, telephone for help, and the local fire department responded, the aircraft was engulfed in flames and eventually consumed by the ground fire.
On July 1, 1996, at 1145 hours Pacific daylight time, a Mooney M20E, N3229F, was destroyed by ground fire when the aircraft rolled off the end of the runway at the Rio Linda, California, airport and the exhaust ignited dried grass. The aircraft was owned and operated by the pilot and was completing a personal cross-country flight from Palo Alto, California. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft was destroyed in the ground fire along with an undetermined amount of grass land and trees. The certificated private pilot and his one passenger were not injured. The flight originated in Palo Alto at 1100 on the day of the accident. The pilot stated that the winds were calm when he crossed the threshold "a little high and 10 knots fast" on the 2,620-foot-long runway 17. The pilot said, "I was able to get the wheels on the ground before midfield, but I bounced the airplane and had a very hard time getting it back on the runway." The pilot was unable to stop the aircraft prior to running off the departure end about 5 mph. The aircraft traveled about 15 feet into an area of tall dried grass. As the pilot shut down the engine he noticed a fire behind the aircraft's wing and evacuated the aircraft. By the time the pilot could get to a phone, telephone for help, and the local fire department responded, the aircraft was engulfed in flames and eventually consumed by the ground fire.
The pilot's failure to attain/maintain the proper approach airspeed, his failure to attain the proper runway touchdown point, and his failure to initiate a go-around when a landing overshoot became apparent. A factor in the accident was the airport management's failure to ensure that the overrun area was clear of potential fire hazards.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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