# NTSB DEN08CA136: Air Tractor AT-402, N4555Y, Dexter, NM, August 9, 2008 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: August 9, 2008, 10:45 local (16:45 UTC) - Place: Dexter, NM - Coordinates: 33.266666, -104.386947 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.2667&lon=-104.3869&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 22, 2009 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA Flight Standards District Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 68666 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=DEN08CA136 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/68666/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN08CA136 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Performance/control parameters: directional control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintained (probable cause); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020/cases.md?model=0390205), [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-402, 4 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md?model=0390205), [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-landing roll: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) (defining event); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md?model=0390205), [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) - [Landing-landing roll: Landing gear collapse](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/094); cases with it: [Air Tractor AT-402, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/094/sequence.md?model=0390205), [All aircraft, 1,787 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/094/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot said he was landing at the airstrip to refill the hopper with chemical. The airplane went off the side of the runway and ground looped. The left main landing gear was torn off, the left wing tip was scraped, and the left aileron was bent. The pilot reported no control malfunction or other anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. According the repair facility spokesman, there was no way of determining if the the landing gear had been bent previously or if there was a discrepancy with the toe-in. ## Factual narrative On August 9, 2008 approximately 1045 mountain daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-402, N4555Y, registered to and operated by Summers Spraying Service and piloted by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged when it ground looped and collided with terrain during landing at Richie Crockett Airstrip, a private airstrip, in Dexter, New Mexico. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The aerial application flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 137 without a flight plan. The pilot was not injured. The local flight originated from Dexter approximately 1000. The pilot said he submitted NTSB Form 6120.1/2, Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, to the Dallas office of NTSB. It was never received. The following is based on information that was collected at the time of the accident: The pilot said he was landing at the airstrip to refill the hopper with chemical. The airplane went off the side of the runway and ground looped. The left main landing gear was torn off, the left wing tip was scraped, and the left aileron was bent. The pilot reported no control malfunction or other anomalies with the airplane prior to the accident. The repair facility was contacted. According to a spokesman, due to the damage, there was no way of determining if the the landing gear had been bent previously or if there was a discrepancy with the toe-in. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N4555Y](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4555Y), registered now, S/N 402-0812, built 1991 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Air Tractor AT-402 - Registry model: [Air Tractor AT-402](https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-402) (registry code 0390205) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney PT6A series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (registry code 52034, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 402-0812 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-15AG 680 horsepower turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Operator: Summers Spraying Srevice, Inc. - Registered owner: Summers Spraying Srevice, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Departed: NONE, Dexter, NM - Destination: NONE, Dexter, NM - Airport: NONE, Richie Crockett Airstrip ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 53; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine sea; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; seat: center; flight hours: 12,000 total, 1 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: calm - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 82 °F, dew point 63 °F - Altimeter: 29.97 inHg - Observed at: ROW, 11 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20080809844159A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080809844159A), Aug 9, 2008: Airtrc AT402, Dexter, NM, Substantial damage. (-23) On August 9, 2008 at 1245 MDT, a air tractor AT-402 registered to summers spraying service, departed the runway on landing at Richie crockett airstrip,… 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.