# Incident 19960321017399I: Airtrc AT401, Ellinwood, KS, March 21, 1996

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: March 21, 1996, 17:55 local time
- Place: Ellinwood, KS
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137)
- Location: 38.3574° N, 98.5839° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Ellinwood, KS, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.3574&lon=-98.5839&mi=10
- Aircraft: N4549E, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4549E) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Air Tractor AT-401 (registry code 0390204, https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-401) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney R1340 series (registry code 52016, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r1340-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AIRTRC AT401
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 10,000 total, 1,800 in this make and model, 10 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960321017399I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

NARRATIVE: MR. HOEFFNER WAS SPRAYING TWO PASTURES LOCATED ACROSS THE ROAD FROM EACH OTHER AND SEPARATED BY A POWERLINE. HE WAS CLIMBING OVER THE POWERLINE ON EACH PASS. ON THE SIXTH PASS, HE HAD STARTED THE CLIMB WHEN HIS ENGINE BEGAN TO RUN ROUGH. IN HIS DISTRACTION, HE HAD LOST JUST ENOUGH ALTITUDE SO THAT HIS FRONT LANDING GEAR MADE CONTACT WITH THE TOP WIRE OF THE POWERLINE. THE DOWNED POWERLINE IGNITED A SMALL GRASS FIRE WHICH SELF EXTINGUISHED. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED AS A PRECAUTION. UPON LANDING, THE AIRCRAFT FUEL TANKS WERE RE-DRAINED. MINOR CONTAMINATION WAS FOUND. THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN FUELED FROM AN ALMOST EMPTY PORTABLE FUEL TANK USED FOR REMOTE FIELDS. IT WAS THE FIRST TIME FOR ITS USE THIS SEASON.

## Other reports on N4549E (2)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Accident 20150609008669A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20150609008669A), Jun 9, 2015: Air Tractor Inc AT-401 (N4549E), Wall, SD, Substantial damage. On June 9, 2015, at 1630 an Air tractor (AT-401) registered to cedar butte Air inc., was involved in an accident while taking-off from a Grass strip for the…
- [Accident 20010702018889A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010702018889A), Jul 2, 2001: Airtrc AT401 (N4549E), Ellinwood, KS, No damage. (.19) On July 2, 2001, at 0930 central daylight time, an air tractor AT-401, N4549E, contacted a guy wire and collided with the terrain during an aerial…

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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