# Accident 19970507008419A: Airtrc AT301, Huron, SD, May 7, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 7, 1997, 11:12 local time
- Place: Huron, SD
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137)
- Location: 44.3595° N, 98.2093° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.3595&lon=-98.2093&mi=10
- Aircraft: N23640, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N23640-1998-10-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Air Tractor AT-301 (registry code 0390103, https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-301) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AIRTRC AT301
- Reported engine: PWA R1340*
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 2,732 total, 812 in this make and model, 129 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI97LA124](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA124) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970507008419A

## Narrative

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

AIRCRAFT STRUCK WIRES DURING AERIAL APPLICATION AND CRASHED. (.4)THE PILOT SAID THAT HE HAD COMPLETED HIS TURN TO ENTER THE FIELD HE WAS SPRAYING.  HE ENTERED THE FIELD DOWNWIND OVER THE TREES.  ON ENTERING THE FIELD THE AIRPLANE STRUCK POWER TRANSMISSION CABLES.  THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED ON THE GROUND AND CAME TO REST IN A WHEAT FIELD.  EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE SHOWED PART OF A TRANSMISSION LINE WRAPPED AROUND THE PROPELLER.       (-23) ON MAY 7, 1997, AT 1112 CDT, AN AIR TRACTOR, AT-301, N23640, OPERATED BY A COMMERICAL PILOT, SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE WHEN, DURING MANEUVERING THE AIRPLANE, STRUCK SOME HIGH-TENSION POWER LINES.  THE AIRPLANE SUBSEQUENTLY IMPACTED THE TERRAIN.  VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT.  THE AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT WAS BEING CONDUCTED UNDER 14 CFR PART 137.  A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT ON FILE.  THE PILOT REPORTED NO INJURIES.  THE LOCAL FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT HURON, SOUTH DAKOTA.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB CHI97LA124](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA124), May 7, 1997: Air Tractor AT-301 (N23640), Huron, SD, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from known transmission lines.

## Other reports on N23640 (1)

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

- [Accident 19880718063959A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19880718063959A), Jul 18, 1988: Airtrc AT301 (N23640), Moorhead, MS, Substantial damage. Wind shifted to tailwind departing ag strip. Dumped load but settled into a pond off end of strip.

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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