- Date
- May 8, 1990, 11:15 local (16:15 UTC)
- Place
- Woonsocket, SD
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 uninjured
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 31, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA reports
- 19900508014771A19900508014772A
- Case key
- 17803
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
Failure of the pilot of N3634E to follow the briefed plan of operation, and failure of both pilots to see-and-avoid each other (inadequate visual lookout).
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 plts of two PA-36 agricultural application acft (N3634E & N6177A) were spraying adjacent fields. The acft were owned and operated by a father and son team. The plts had prebriefed to spray with east/west swath runs. However, during the flight, the plt of N3634E changed to north/south run(s). Subsequently, the two acft converged and collided as each was pulling up at the end of a swath run.
Aircraft · 2
- Registration
- N3634E
- Reported as
- Piper PA-36-375
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 36-7902042
- Airframe hours
- 1,990
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-520, 375 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Emmett Hofer
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 17, 1990 · 2 hours before
- Departed
- Woonsocket, 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.
- Registration
- N6177A
- Reported as
- Piper PA-36-375
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 36-8102017
- Airframe hours
- 1,574
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-520, 375 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Gary Hofer
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 16, 1990 · 5 hours before
- Departed
- NONE · Woonsocket, 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 · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N3634E
- Age
- 60
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 7,060 total · 2,005 in this make and model · 7,000 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot, aircraft N6177A
- Age
- 34
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 4,675 total · 1,600 in this make and model · 4,500 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 30 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 39 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- HON, 16 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 2
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.