# Accident 20020805017049A: Ayres S2R, Losbanos, CA, August 5, 2002 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: August 5, 2002, 06:15 local time - Place: Losbanos, CA - Damage: No damage - Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137) - Location: 36.9000° N, 120.8667° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.9000&lon=-120.8667&mi=10 - Aircraft: N8822Q, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8822Q-2007-08-29) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Aero Commander S2R (registry code 0143022, https://openairdocs.org/model/aero-commander-s2r) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney R1340 series (registry code 52016, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r1340-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: AYRES S2R - NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX02LA246](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA246) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020805017049A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) ON 08-05-02 AT APPROXIMATELY 0615 HOURS PDT, MR. HANDY, A COMMERCIAL PILOT WORKING FOR VANCE THEIL, INC., WAS ENGAGED IN AGRICULTURAL AERIAL APPLICATION WORK AT NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF CALIFORNIA HIGHWAYS 5 (I-5) AND 165 (NINE MILES SOUTHEAST ON A HEADING OF 155 DEGREES FROM THE LOS BANOS, CA, AIRPORT). FOLLOWING THE FIRST PASS OF HIS SECOND LOAD ON A FIELD EAST OF AND ADJACENT TO I-5, HE BEGAN A RIGHT TURN TO THE WEST TOWARD THE HILLS BACK TO THE FIELD. HE EXPERIENCED WHAT HE BELIEVED TO BE WIND SHEAR AND THE AIRCRAFT BEGAN TO STALL. MR. HANDY BEGAN A SLOW JETTISONING OF HIS CHEMICAL LOAD IN AN ATTEMPT TO REGAIN CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE AIRCRAFT ROLLED TO THE LEFT AND THE LEFT WING STRUCK THE SIDE OF A HILL. THE AIRCRAFT CART WHEELED (LEFT WING TO NOSE TO RIGHT WING AND FUSELAGE BOUNCING ONTO ITS WHEELS), THE PROPELLER AND HUB WERE SEPARATED FROM THE ENGINE, THE TAIL WHEEL SEPARATED FROM THE FUSELAGE AND THE AIRCRAFT SLID SOME FIFTY FEET BACKWARD DOWN THE HILL, COMING TO REST RIGHT SIDE UP, FACING SOUTH. MR. HANDY WAS NOT INJURED. (.19) ON AUGUST 5, 2002, AT 0620 PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, AN AERO COMMANDER S 2R-T34, COLLIDED WITH TERRAIN WHILE REVERSING COURSE DURING AN AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT NEAR LOS BANOS, CALIFORNIA. THE AIRPLANE WAS OPERATED BY VANCE THEIL, INC., UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 137 OF THE FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATIONS, AND SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE COMMERCIAL PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, WAS NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED FOR THE LOCAL AREA AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT THAT ORIGINATED FROM A NEARBY PRIVATE FARM AIRSTRIP AT 0610. IN A TELEPHONE INTERVIEW, THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE WAS MAKING PASSES OVER A FIELD FROM NORTH TO SOUTH. RISING TERRAIN THAT CONTINUES INTO HILLS BORDERS ONE SIDE OF THE FIELD. HE HAD COMPLETED ONE PASS AND WAS IN A LEFT COURSE REVERSAL TURN WHEN HE ENCOUNTERED SOME TURBULENCE. HE SAID THE AIRPLANE SEEMED TO COME TO A STOP, THEN BEGAN MUSHING TOWARD THE GROUND. HE ADDED POWER AND ATTEMPTED TO RECOVER BUT THE LEFT WING TIP TOUCHED THE HILLSIDE AND THEN THE AIRPLANE COLLIDED WITH THE GROUND. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE THERE WERE NO MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS OR FAILURES PRIOR TO THE MISHAP. ## 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 LAX02LA246](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA246), Aug 5, 2002: Aero Commander S2R-T34 (N8822Q), Los Banos, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed while maneuvering, which resulted in an inadvertent stall. ## Other reports on N8822Q (2) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Accident 20040918022049A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040918022049A), Sep 18, 2004: Ayres S2R (N8822Q), Firebaugh, CA, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot was spraying a field at night, flying under high tension powerlines suspended by towers, that converged into his flight path. Thinking he was at… - [Accident 19830317008379A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19830317008379A), Mar 17, 1983: Ayres S2RRESTD (N8822Q), Dos Palos, CA, Substantial damage. Veered off the landing strip into mud and nosed over. Was landing with a quartering tail wind. 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.