# NTSB CEN25LA002: Air Tractor AT-402A, N45472, Moffett, OK, October 1, 2024

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · No injuries · Class 4 · Limited · Final report
- Date: October 1, 2024, 16:20 UTC
- Place: Moffett, OK
- Coordinates: 35.390388, -94.438095 (estimated)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.3904&lon=-94.4381&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Landing: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330)
- Highest injury: No injuries
- Injuries: 1 uninjured
- Status: Completed
- Report: Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class: Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office: Central Region
- Parties: FAA FSDO
- NTSB case key (mKey): 195238
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN25LA002
- NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/195238/pdf
- NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=195238
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN25LA002

## Probable cause

The tail wheel assembly’s fractured bolt which resulted in the pilot’s loss of directional control during landing.

## Findings

NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause.

- [Landing gear system: nose/tail gear strut/axle](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023222): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Failure (probable cause); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402A, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023222/cases.md?model=0390206), [All aircraft, 36 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023222/cases.md)
- [Performance/control parameters: directional control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Attain/maintain not possible (probable cause); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402A, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020/cases.md?model=0390206), [All aircraft, 3,958 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020/cases.md)
- [Use of equip/info: aircraft control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402A, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md?model=0390206), [All aircraft, 9,295 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md)

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Landing: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330) (defining event); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402A, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330/sequence.md?model=0390206), [All aircraft, 994 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/330/sequence.md)

## Analysis

During the landing roll on a dirt strip, the pilot felt the airplane’s tail section “bottom out”. The pilot lost rudder control, and the airplane veered off the strip into vegetation and ground looped. During the ground loop, the left wing struck the ground, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing and aileron. A postaccident examination of the airplane found that one of the bolts which secured the tail wheel spring to the tail wheel housing assembly had fractured. The pilot did not submit the National Transportation Safety Board Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report Form 6120.1.

## Aircraft

- Registration: [N45472](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N45472), registered now, S/N 402A-0794, built 1991 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AIR TRACTOR INC AT-402A
- Registry model: [Air Tractor AT-402A](https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-402a) (registry code 0390206) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney PT6A series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (registry code 52032, turbo-prop) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Airplane
- Serial number: 402A-0794
- Year built: 1991
- Engines: PWC PT6A-20 550 horsepower turbo prop
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Flight: Aerial application, Part 137
- Operator: Hookin A Ag Inc, doing business as Hookin A Ag Inc
- Registered owner: Allard Evan Wade DBA
- Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special)
- Airport: NA, Private strip, runway 270, dirt
- Equipment: Unknown

## Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

- Pilot; age 35; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; medical: class 2, without waivers/limitations; seat: single; restraint: 4-point

## Weather

- Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day
- Wind: 10° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling: none
- Temperature: 88 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter: 30.09 inHg
- Observed at: KFSM, 5 nm away
- METAR: KFSM 012053Z 01008KT 10SM CLR 31/13 A3009 RMK AO2 SLP185 T03060133 56016

## FAA reports on this event (1)

The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20241001014609A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20241001014609A), Oct 1, 2024: Air Tractor Inc AT-402A, Moffett, OK, Substantial damage. During a "14 CFR 137 flight, day VFR flight, the pilot was returning to re-fill chemicals near Moffett, OK. The pilot stated that at approximately 1330 CDT, he…

## Docket (3 files)

The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 5, 2025, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=195238. 1.8 MB in all.

- NTSB form 6120 not returned (item 1, PDF, 1 page, 54 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=18715004&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Form%206120%20not%20returned-Rel.pdf
- Record of conversation (item 2, PDF, 1 page, 86 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=18714861&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=ROC%20CEN25LA002-Rel.pdf
- Photographs (item 3, PDF, 4 pages, 3 photos, 1.6 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=18715142&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=CEN25LA002%20Photos%203-Rel.pdf

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.

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