# Accident 19970816022699A: Piper PA25235, Bradshaw, NE, August 16, 1997

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 16, 1997, 09:45 local time
- Place: Bradshaw, NE
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137)
- Location: 40.9398° N, 97.7607° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.9398&lon=-97.7607&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8622L (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA25235
- Reported engine: LYC O540*
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,050 total, 735 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI97LA259](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA259) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970816022699A

## Narrative

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

AIRCRAFT WAS INVOLVED IN AERIAL APPLICATION WHEN IT CAME IN TOO CLOSE TO THE FIELD AND CRASHED. (.4) IN HIS WRITTEN STATEMENT, THE PILOT SAID THAT WHILE EN ROUTE TO THE FIELDS TO BE SPRAYED, HE WAS DISTRACTED BY PROBLEMS WITH THE ON BOARD 'GLOBAL POSITIONING FLAGGER' EQUIPMENT. 'I CALLED THE BASE TO GET ASSISTANCE ON GETTING THE LIGHT BAR TO WORK. AFTER CIRCLING THE FIELD SEVERAL TIMES, I DISCOVERED THAT I HAD INADVERTENTLY TURNED THE LIGHT BAR OFF AND I SWITCHED IT BACK ON.' THE PILOT CIRCLED AROUND TO RE-ENTER THE FIELD ON WHICH HE MADE HIS FIRST AERIAL APPLICATION PASS. HE REPORTED THAT UPON COMPLETING HIS SECOND PASS HE OBSERVED ANOTHER AG-PLANE ENTERING THE AREA. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT BECAUSE OF THE DISTRACTION, AND THE DOWNWIND TURN, HE WAS '...WIDE OFF MY MARK.' THE PILOT MANEUVERED THE AIRPLANE TO LINE UP ON THE FIELD. 'AS I ENTERED THE FIELD, I REALIZED THAT I WAS HAVING A PROBLEM WITH LIFT. BUT BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO INCREASE THROTTLE OR DUMP THE LOAD, THE PLANE WAS STARTING TO SINK IN THE CORN.' THE AIRPLANE THEN IMPACTED INTO THE FIELD AND CAME TO A STOP. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED NO ANOMALIES.

## 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 CHI97LA259](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI97LA259), Aug 16, 1997: Piper PA-25-235 (N8622L), Bradshaw, NE, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot not maintaining clearance from the terrain. Factors contributing to this accident were the pilot's diverted attention due to the problems with his global positioning flagger equipment and…

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.