Air Tractor AT-602 accident near Wheatley, AR
On July 11, 2018, an Air Tractor AT-602 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Wheatley, AR. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- July 11, 2018
- Place
- Wheatley, AR
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-602 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 34.947°N, 91.114°W
- NTSB ID
- 20180711X93304
Official records · CEN18FA263
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn July 11, 2018, about 0630 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-602 airplane, N8508P, was destroyed when it impacted a wooded area about 1.5 miles north of Wheatley, Arkansas, and was consumed by a postcrash fire. The commercial pilot received fatal injuries. The airplane was owned by D-GER LLC, which was operating it as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 aerial application flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the local flight, which departed about 0600 from Frank Federer Memorial Airport (M36), Brinkley, Arkansas. A witness reported that the pilot loaded the airplane with 400 gallons of chemical and that the airplane's fuel tanks were full before the flight departed. He stated that the pilot was planning to spray his own 40-acre field about 5 nautical miles (nm) from M36. There were no witnesses to the accident. A witness reported seeing fire and smoke about 0630, and the wreckage was subsequently found by first responders. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe 41-year-old pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single- and multi-engine land. He held a second-class Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airman medical certificate, which was issued on January 22, 2018, with no limitations. On the application for that certificate, the pilot reported 4,023 total hours of flight experience with 200 hours in the previous 6 months. The pilot's logbook indicated that he obtained his agricultural aircraft pilot endorsement on May 1, 2007. AIRCRAFT INFORMATIONThe low-wing, single-engine
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from terrain for reasons that could not be determined based on the available evidence.
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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.
