Air Tractor AT502 accident near Eagle Lake, TX
On May 11, 2019, an Air Tractor AT502 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Eagle Lake, TX. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 11, 2019
- Place
- Eagle Lake, TX
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT502 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 29.516°N, 96.398°W
- NTSB ID
- 20190511X33053
Official records · CEN19FA140
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn May 11, 2019, about 0810 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-502A airplane, N713LA, impacted a grass field while maneuvering about 6 miles southwest of Eagle Lake, Texas. The commercial pilot received fatal injuries. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces. The airplane was registered to a private individual and was operated by ANF Air Service Inc. as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 137 aerial application flight. Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan was filed for the visual flight rules (VFR) flight. The flight originated from the operator's private airstrip, which was about 5.5 miles west of Garwood, Texas, at 0743. The operator (the pilot's father, who owned the operation), reported that the purpose of the flight was for the pilot to spray herbicide on several rice fields about 10 miles south of Garwood. According to the operator, the pilot used Aeroweather on his cell phone for preflight weather planning. Shortly after departure, the pilot contacted the operator using his cell phone and a Bluetooth adapter (which was connected to the pilot's flight helmet and interfaced with the cockpit intercom system) and reported that he observed fog "rolling in." The pilot also reported that he was flying above the fog layer. The pilot indicated his intention to divert to Eagle Lake Airport (ELA), Eagle Lake, Texas, instead of the operator's airstrip and terminate the flight. The operator received no further communication from the pilot. An overview of the route of flight an
Probable cause
The non-instrument-rated pilot's decision to fly into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in spatial disorientation, a loss of control, and a subsequent impact with terrain.
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Browse: Texas · 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.
