# Accident 19990331003129A: Airtrc AT301, Garwood, TX, March 31, 1999 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: March 31, 1999, 17:15 local time - Place: Garwood, TX - Airport: Anf Air Service - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing) - Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137) - Operator: A3NG - Location: 29.4495° N, 96.5107° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=29.4495&lon=-96.5107&mi=10 - Aircraft: N8789S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8789S-2017-02-22) (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 R1340AN1 - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 20,000 total, 4,500 in this make and model, 50 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW99LA107](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA107) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990331003129A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE ACFT ON LANDING, AND THE ACFT STRUCK A CONCRETE POST WITH THE LEFT WING, A TREE WITH THE RIGHT WING, AND A DITCH WITH THE TAIL WHEEL, OTHER CIRCUMSTANCES ARE UNKNOWN. (.19) ON MARCH 31, 1999, AT 1730 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, AN AIR TRACTOR AT-301 AGRICULTURAL AIRPLANE, N8789S, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED UPON COLLISION WITH A POST WHILE LANDING NEAR GARWOOD, TEXAS. THE INSTRUMENT RATED COMMERCIAL PILOT, SOLE OCCUPANT OF THE AIRPLANE, WAS NOT INJURED. THE AIRPLANE WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY ANF AIR SERVICES INC., OF GARWOOD, TEXAS. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE TITLE 14 CFR PART 137 FLIGHT FOR WHICH A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. THE LOCAL FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM THE OPERATOR'S PRIVATE AIRSTRIP APPROXIMATELY 30 MINUTES PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. THE OPERATOR REPORTED TO THE FAA INSPECTOR, WHO RESPONDED TO THE ACCIDENT SITE, THAT AFTER A NORMAL LANDING AND ROLL OUT, THE PILOT INITIALLY APPLIED BRAKE PRESSURE TO SLOW DOWN THE AIRPLANE'S LANDING ROLL. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT WHEN HE ATTEMPTED TO RE-APPLY BRAKE PRESSURE, THE RIGHT BRAKE PEDAL "FELL ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOORBOARD" RESULTING IN A LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL. THE AIRPLANE CAME TO A STOP AFTER THE LEFT WING IMPACTED A CONCRETE POLE LOCATED ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE AIRSTRIP. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE BY THE FAA INSPECTOR REVEALED STRUCTURAL DAMAGE TO THE LEFT WING SPAR AND THE EMPENNAGE. THE INSPECTOR FURTHER STATED THAT THE FAILURE OF THE RIGHT BRAKE WAS DUE TO THE SEPARATION OF THE THREADED ROD CONNECTING THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER TO THE TOP PORTION OF THE RUDDER PEDAL. THE INSPECTOR ADDED THAT THE JAM NUT WAS FOUND STILL ATTACHED TO THE ROD. (.4) THE COMMERCIAL PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE AGRICULTURAL AIRPLANE DURING THE LANDING ROLL FOLLOWING THE FAILURE OF THE RIGHT WHEEL BRAKE SYSTEM. THE PILOT INITIALLY APPLIED BRAKE PRESSURE TO SLOW DOWN THE AIRPLANE'S LANDING ROLL. WHEN THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO RE-APPLY BRAKE PRESSURE, THE RIGHT BRAKE PEDAL 'FELL ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOORBOARD.' THE AIRPLANE MADE A GRADUAL LEFT TURN, WHICH THE PILOT COULD NOT COMPENSATE FOR WITH AN INOPERATIVE RIGHT BRAKE. THE LEFT WING IMPACTED A CONCRETE POLE LOCATED ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE AIRSTRIP. THE FAA INSPECTOR STATED THAT THE FAILURE OF THE RIGHT BRAKE WAS DUE TO THE EYE BOLT, WHICH CONNECTS THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER TO THE TOP PORTION OF THE RUDDER PEDAL, PULLING OUT TO THE MASTER CYLINDER. THE OPERATOR STATED THAT THE ONLY POSSIBLE WAY FOR THE EYE BOLT TO BECOME SEPARATED FROM THE MASTER CYLINDER WAS FOR THE EYE BOLT TO 'PULL OUT' OF THE THREADED HOLE IN THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER. THE OPERATOR REPORTED THAT THE TIME IN SERVICE FOR THE FAILED PART WAS UNKNOWN. HE ADDED THAT THE BOTTOM 2 OR 3 THREADS OF THE EYE BOLT APPEARED TO BE DAMAGED OR STRIPPED, WHICH 'COULD HAVE RESULTED IN THE EYE BOLT PULLING OUT' OF THE CYLINDER. (-23)ON LANDING ROLLOUT, THE RIGHT BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER BECAME DISCONNECTED FROM THE MASTER CYLINDER CLEVIS WHERE IT ATTACHES TO THE RIGHT RUDDER PEDAL. THE CLEVIS SCREWS INTO THE MASTER CYLINDER AND HAS A JAMB NUT TO LOCK INTO PLACE. WHEN THE CLEVIS SEPERATED FROM THE MASTER CYLINDER, THE RUDDER PEDAL BACAME INEFFECTIVE FOR BRAKING. WITH ONLY THE LEFT BRAKE WORKING, THE AIRCRAFT EXITED THE RUNWAY TO THE LEFT STRIKING A CONCRET POST WITH THE LEFT WING, A TREE WITH THE RIGHT WING AND A DITCH WITH THE TAILWHEEL ASSEMBLY. THE WINGS REMAINED INTACT BUT SERIOUS SPAR DAMAGE OCCURRED. THE EPENAUGE ALSO RECEIVED CRACKS IN THE STRUCTURAL TUBING. THE AIRCRAFT HAD AN ANN UAL INSPECTION 24.0 HOURS PRIOR. ACCORDING TO MAINTENANCE RECORDS ENTRIES, NO WORK WAS ACCOMPLISHED ON THE MASTER CYLINDER ASSEMBLIES. ## 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 FTW99LA107](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA107), Mar 31, 1999: Air Tractor AT-301 (N8789S), Garwood, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inability to maintain directional control of the airplane as result of the failure of the right brake system due to the stripped threads on the eye bolt connecting the brake pedal to the… 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.