# Accident 20231024015339A: Air Tractor Inc AT-502B, Vidalia, LA, October 24, 2023

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 24, 2023, 09:20 local time
- Place: Vidalia, LA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: Agricultural (Part 137)
- Operator: SFQG
- Location: 31.5466° N, 91.4521° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.5466&lon=-91.4521&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5180W, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5180W-2024-03-19) (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: AIR TRACTOR INC AT-502B
- Reported engine: P&W PT6A SERIES
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 15,198 total, 5,325 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN24FA021](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN24FA021) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20231024015339A

## Narrative

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

ON 10/24/2023, AT APPROXIMATELY 0915 CDT, AN AIR TRACTOR-502B AGRICULTURE AIRPLANE WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT IN WHICH THE PILOT (SOLE OCCUPANT) WAS FATALLY INJURED.  THE AIRCRAFT WAS CONDUCTING 14 CFR 137 OPERATIONS AND WAS APPLYING THE THIRD LOAD OF THE DAY, BUT THE FIRST IN THE FIELD IN WHICH THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED.

THE MAIN WRECKAGE LOCATION WAS IN A HEAVILY WOODED AREA THAT IS A DRY-RIVERBED ADJACENT TO THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER NEAR VIDALIA, LA APPROXIMATELY 1,500 FEET SOUTH OF FIELD THAT WAS BEING SPRAYED.  A PORTION OF A WING WAS LOCATED DIRECTLY BELOW A HIGH-TENSION POWERLINE THAT SPANS THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER WHICH WAS APPROXIMATELY 570 FEET SOUTHEAST OF THE MAIN WRECKAGE.  ANOTHER PORTION OF WING WAS LOCATED APPROXIMATELY HALF-WAY BETWEEN THE MAIN WRECKAGE AND THE PORTION BELOW THE POWERLINE.  DAMAGE TO THE POWERLINE COULD BE OBSERVED FROM THE GROUND, AND ENTERGY PERSONNEL ESTIMATED THAT THE DAMAGE IS 400-450 FEET AGL.

ACCORDING TO EYEWITNESSES INTERVIEWED BY THE CONCORDIA PARISH SHERIFF’S OFFICE, THE AIRPLANE APPLIED SEED IN A NEARBY FIELD AND THEN FLEW EAST.  THE AIRPLANE ENTERED A CLIMBING RIGHT TURN, AND COLLIED WITH THE POWERLINE THAT SPANNED THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.  THE AIRPLANE WAS THEN OBSERVED TO DESCEND INTO THE TREES, AND POTIONS OF THE AIRPLANE WERE SEEN TO FALL FROM THE SKY.

THE MAIN WRECKAGE WAS FOUND TO BE RELATIVELY INTACT, APPEARED TO IMPACT THE GROUND IN A NOSE DOWN CONFIGURATION, AND THE DAMAGE TO PROPELLOR INDICATED THAT THE ENGINE WAS DEVELOPING POWER.  ALL MAJOR FLIGHT CONTROLS WERE ACCOUNTED FOR.  THE HOPPER WAS DESTROYED ON IMPACT AND A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF SEED WAS PRESENT AT THE SITE.

## 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 CEN24FA021](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN24FA021), Oct 24, 2023: Air Tractor AT-502B (N5180W), Vidalia, LA, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from power lines during an aerial application flight. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s cell phone use and the position of the sun, which reduced…

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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