Air Tractor AT-402 accident near Pine Bluff, AR
On March 17, 1997, an Air Tractor AT-402 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Pine Bluff, AR. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- March 17, 1997
- Place
- Pine Bluff, AR
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-402 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 34.211°N, 92.009°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001208X07536
NTSB summary
On March 17, 1997, approximately 1430 central standard time, an Air Tractor AT-402 agricultural airplane, N1524R, registered to and operated by Jerry's Flying Service, Inc., of Wabbaseka, Arkansas, was destroyed following a collision with an antenna tower while maneuvering near Pine Bluff, Arkansas. The commercial pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the Title 14 CFR Part 137 local aerial application flight that departed from the operator's private airstrip near Wabbaseka, Arkansas, about 1425. During a telephone interview conducted by the NTSB investigator-in-charge, the operator reported that the pilot was probably aligning the airplane for his first pass to apply fertilizer to a field of winter wheat when the airplane's right wing impacted approximately 10 feet below the top of a 204 foot tall antenna tower. The tower was located approximately 1/4 mile north of the wheat field. The outboard section of the right wing was severed by the impact, and the airplane then collided with the ground. According to the operator, this was the pilot's first load of the day, and he was familiar with the area and had worked this field previously. A representative of the airframe manufacturer conducted an on scene examination of the accident site and reported that "about 1/2 of the right wing was found at the base of the antenna tower. The remainder of the airplane was found about 200 yards from the tower." The manufacturer representative interviewed a witness who observed the airplane hit th
Probable cause
failure of the pilot to see-and-avoid the tower. The proximity of the tower was a related factor.
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Browse: Arkansas · Air Tractor aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
