# Accident 19990511020549A: Airtrc AT502A, Huffman, TX, May 11, 1999 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: May 11, 1999, 13:50 local time - Place: Huffman, TX - Airport: South Stoesser - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing) - Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137) - Operator: NPFG - Location: 30.0272° N, 95.0858° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Huffman, TX, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.0272&lon=-95.0858&mi=10 - Aircraft: N166MM, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N166MM) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Air Tractor AT-502A (registry code 0390306, https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-502a) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65B (registry code 52115, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-pt6a-65b) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AIRTRC AT502A - Reported engine: PWA PT6A45R - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 1,517 total, 51 in this make and model, 100 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW99LA137](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA137) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990511020549A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ON MAY 11, 1999, AT 1315 CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME, AN AIR TRACTOR AT-502A AGRICULTURAL AIRPLANE, N166MM, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED WHILE LANDING AT THE SOUTH STOESSER AIRSTRIP NEAR HUFFMAN, TEXAS. THE AIRPLANE WAS OWNED AND OPERATED BY M AND M AIR SERVICE OF WINNIE, TEXAS. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT, SOLE OCCUPANT OF THE AIRPLANE, WAS NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 137 AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT, AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. THE ORIGINATING FLIGHT FOR THE DAY COMMENCED FROM BEAUMONT, TEXAS, AT 0750. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT, THE AIRPLANE WAS LANDING ON THE 2,600 FOOT TURF RUNWAY WHEN A GUST OF WIND RAISED THE LEFT WING. THE RIGHT WING "DIPPED DOWN" AND CONTACTED GRASS THAT WAS APPROXIMATELY FIVE FEET ABOVE GROUND LEVEL. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE AIRPLANE "CARTWHEELED", AND CAME TO REST INVERTED ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. AN FAA INSPECTOR EXAMINED THE AIRPLANE AT THE SITE AND REPORTED THAT THE FUSELAGE WAS SEPARATED AFT OF THE PILOT'S SEAT. THE WING SPARS, THE ELEVATOR AND RUDDER WERE STRUCTURALLY DAMAGED. (.4) THE PILOT OF THE AGRICULTURAL AIRPLANE WAS PERFORMING HIS 16TH APPROACH OF THE DAY INTO THE PRIVATE AIRSTRIP WHEN, DURING THE LANDING FLARE, 'A GUST OF WIND PICKED UP [THE] LEFT WING AND MOVED [THE AIRCRAFT] TO THE RIGHT.' THE RIGHT WING CONTACTED A STRIP OF GRASS, WHICH WAS APPROXIMATELY 5 FEET TALL, ALONG THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT SUBSEQUENTLY 'CARTWHEELED' TO THE RIGHT AND CAME TO REST INVERTED ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT REPORTED WINDS AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT TO BE FROM 130 DEGREES AT 15 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 20 KNOTS. (-23)PILOT DIDN'T COMPENSATE FOR WIND ON LANDING, CAUSING LEFT WING TO TIP TO CONTACT GROUND. ## 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 FTW99LA137](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA137), May 11, 1999: Air Tractor AT-502A (N166MM), Huffman, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadequate compensation for the wind conditions during landing. Factors were the wind gusts and the high vegetation beside the runway. ## Other reports on N166MM (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 20061003020549I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20061003020549I), Oct 3, 2006: Airtrc AT502A (N166MM), Abernathy, TX. (-23) On October 3, 2006 at approximately 1830 CDT, the pilot of N166MM, a model 502A air tractor aircraft, noticed the accumulation of oil deposits on 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.