- Date
- June 23, 2004, 09:45 local (14:45 UTC)
- Place
- Britton, SD
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N1013NAir Tractor AT-401
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 1, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration - Rapid City FSDO
- FAA report
- 20040623012119A
- Case key
- 59539
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 loss of engine power due to a stuck exhaust valve and the unsuitable terrain encountered during the forced landing. A factor to the accident was the soft terrain condition.
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 aerial-application airplane impacted soft terrain and nosed over during a forced landing following a loss of engine power. The pilot reported the engine began running rough after he completed his spraying and was returning to the departure airport. The pilot stated he eventually had to perform a forced landing into a soft field, during which the airplane nosed over. The engine was inspected and the shaft mount for the number eight cylinder rocker-arm was cracked and separated, consistent with damage caused by a stuck exhaust valve.
Factual narrative
On June 23, 2004, at 0945 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-401, N1013N, piloted by a commercial pilot, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing near Britton, South Dakota. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The aerial application flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 137 without a flight plan. The pilot was not injured. The local flight departed Britton Municipal Airport (BTN), Britton, South Dakota, at 0900.
The pilot reported that the engine began running rough after he completed spraying and was returning to BTN. The pilot stated he verified the operation of both magnetos, but the engine continued to run rough. The pilot reported vehicular traffic prevented a landing on a nearby road, so he attempted to fly the airplane back to BTN. The pilot stated he eventually had to perform a forced landing into a soft field, during which the airplane nosed over.
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector examined the engine and found the shaft mount for the number eight cylinder exhaust rocker-arm cracked and separated, consistent with damage caused by a stuck exhaust valve.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1013N
- Reported as
- Air Tractor AT-401
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 401-0722
- Airframe hours
- 2,967.9
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney 1340, 600 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Dakota Ag Service, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 28, 2004 · 94.4 hours before
- Departed
- BTN · Britton, SD
- Destination
- BTN · Britton, SD
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
- 61
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 11,000 total · 1,200 in this make and model · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 320° at 20 knots, gusting 28
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 48 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.89 inHg
- Observed at
- ABR, 36 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.