- Date
- May 17, 1998, 08:30 local (13:30 UTC)
- Place
- Dawson, ND
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N2284BWsk Pzl Mielec M-18A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 15, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980517009589A
- Case key
- 10879
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's failure to maintain clearance with the telephone pole. Factors associated with the accident were the pole and the glare from the rising sun.
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 propeller contacted a telephone pole at a height 30 feet above the ground during an aerial application flight. The result of the impact was a loss of airplane control, followed by the airplane descending to impact the terrain. The airplane was flying to the east, into the sun at the time of the accident.
Factual narrative
On May 17, 1998, at 0830 central daylight time, a WSK PZL Mielec M-18A, N2284B, operated by Kratz Aerial Ag Service, Inc., collided with a telephone pole during an aerial application maneuver. The accident occurred near Dawson, North Dakota. The commercial pilot received serious injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The 14 CFR Part 137 flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan.
Post accident inspection of the accident site by an Inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration Flight Standards District Office revealed the propeller on N2284B contacted the telephone pole at a height of about 30 feet above the ground. The propeller was "severely" damaged and twisted according to the inspector. The airplane impacted the terrain after it collided with the telephone pole. The airplane was traveling to the east into the sun at the time of the accident.
The pilot does not remember any event surrounding the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2284B
- Reported as
- Wsk Pzl Mielec M-18A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1Z024-24
- Engine
- Airesearch TPE-331, 600 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Kratz Aerial Ag Service, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Departed
- Tappen, ND
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
- 38
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 6,000 total · 2,500 in this make and model · 5,000 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 13 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 68 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BIS, 57 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.