Air Tractor Inc AT 502B accident near Garfield, KS
On April 22, 2014, an Air Tractor Inc AT 502B (airplane) was involved in an accident near Garfield, KS. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- April 22, 2014
- Place
- Garfield, KS
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor Inc AT 502B · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 38.076°N, 99.245°W
- NTSB ID
- 20140422X54949
Official records · CEN14LA211
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On April 22, 2014, about 1310 central daylight time, N51990, an Air Tractor 502B, was destroyed when it collided with power lines then terrain while spraying a hay field in Garfield. Kansas. The airline transport rated pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was registered to Farmer's Spraying Service Incorporated, Pratt, Kansas, and operated by Gross Flying Service, Pratt, Kansas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the aerial spraying flight conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137. A witness stated that he had hired the operator to spray his hay field for weevils. He heard the airplane circle over his field twice then looked out the window where he saw the airplane start its first pass from south to north. The witness then saw a puff of smoke when the airplane struck a set of power lines (about 60 feet tall) that ran east and west along the southern edge of the field. The airplane descended behind a tree line and the witness no longer heard or saw the airplane. He then drove toward where he last saw the airplane and discovered that it had crashed on a dirt road east of the field and called 911. There was no post-impact fire. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector responded to the accident site and said the airplane struck the two very top wires to a set of power lines, which were 3/8-inch-wide steel, static cables. The wires sat about 5 feet below the top of the poles, about 55-feet-above the ground. The airplane crossed over a set of trees before it collided with terrain about 275 feet north of the power
Probable cause
The pilot’s inadequate preflight planning and subsequent failure to remain clear of power lines while maneuvering low to the ground.
More accidents in KS
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Browse: Kansas · 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.
