- Date
- July 24, 2002, 20:00 local (Jul 25, 2002, 01:00 UTC)
- Place
- Central City, NE
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N5296Grumman G-164
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed · report November 4, 2002
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20020724027639A
- Case key
- 55295
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot was not able to maintain clearance with the trees when the airplane encountered a downdraft at a low altitude. An additional cause was the pilot's inadequate evaluation of the approaching weather conditions. Factors associated with the accident were the downdraft and the trees which were contacted.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The airplance collided with trees after encountering a downdraft. The pilot reported that he had just finished an aerial application flight, departed the field, and was climbing to return to the airport when the airplane encountered a downdraft. The pilot stated the airplane was at an altitude of 250 feet to 300 feet at the time. The pilot reported that the ceiling had decreased to approximately 800 feet during the flight. He reported, "I hit severe turbulence and a severe downdraft." He stated he added full power, but the airplane descended to an altitude of approximately 50 feet where the right wing struck cottonwood trees. The airplane then stalled and descended into a bean field. The pilot reported the fuel tank ruptured during the impact and a post crash fire ensued. The pilot reported on an NTSB Form 6120.1/2, "If I had left the field sooner instead of finishing my load I may have avoided the whole incident." Weather radar images and local obdervations show that thunderstorms were moving into the area at the time of the accident.
Factual narrative
On July 24, 2002, at 2000 central daylight time, a Grumman G-164, N5296, collided with trees and the terrain following a loss of control in Central City, Nebraska. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces and a post impact fire. The Title 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from the Central City Municipal Airport, Central City, Nebraska, at 1930.
The pilot reported that he had just finished an aerial application flight, departed the field, and was climbing to return to the airport when the airplane encountered a downdraft. The pilot stated the airplane was at an altitude of 250 feet to 300 feet at the time. The pilot reported that the ceiling had decreased to approximately 800 feet. He reported, "I hit severe turbulence and a severe downdraft." He stated he added full power, but the airplane descended to an altitude of approximately 50 feet where the right wing struck cottonwood trees. The airplane then stalled and descended into a bean field. The pilot reported the fuel tank ruptured during the impact and a post crash fire ensued.
Weather radar images and local obdervations show that thunderstorms were moving into the area at the time of the accident.
The pilot reported on an NTSB Form 6120.1/2, "If I had left the field sooner instead of finishing my load I may have avoided the whole incident."
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5296
- Reported as
- Grumman G-164
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 580
- Airframe hours
- 4,442
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney R985-AN-14B, 450 hp, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Larry T. Reineke
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 20, 2002 · 15 hours before
- Departed
- 07K · Central City, NE
- Destination
- 07K · Central City, NE
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 70
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Last flight review
- January 6, 2002
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 10,811 total · 950 in this make and model · 10,693 as pilot in command · 122 in the last 90 days · 45 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 30 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 800 ft broken
- Temperature
- 95 °F
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 23, 2002, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.3 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N5296 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.