# Accident 19980902022209A: Airtrc AT502B, Portales, NM, September 2, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 2, 1998
- Place: Portales, NM
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137)
- Location: 34.1794° N, 103.3401° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.1794&lon=-103.3401&mi=10
- Aircraft: N50620, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N50620-2013-08-23) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Air Tractor AT-502B (registry code 0390307, https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-502b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney PT6A series (registry code 52034, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AIRTRC AT502B
- Fatal injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW98LA383](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98LA383) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980902022209A

## Narrative

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

AIR TRACTOR 502 ACFT WAS INVOLVED IN AERIAL APPLICATION WHEN IT LOST CONTROL, CRASHED, AND WAS DESTROYED. (-23)DURING AERIAL APPLICATION THIS COMMERCIAL PILOT WAS ADJUSTING HIS ONBOARD GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM AND HIS AIRCRAFT STRUCK A IRRIGATION PIVOT.

## 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 FTW98LA383](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW98LA383), Sep 2, 1998: Air Tractor AT-502B (N50620), Portales, NM, destroyed. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate altitude/clearance during an aerial application. Also causal was the inadvertent ground loop/swerve during the landing.

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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